• NNPCL faces N514bn queries over crude sales, revenue deductions
• INEC to explain N288.19bn audit queries, N5.31bn smart card reader payment
• House demands documents, explanations from accounting officers
The House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee is set to turn the heat on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and the Independent National Electoral Commission as it probes alleged financial irregularities and unresolved audit queries involving more than N802.19bn.
Officials of the two institutions are expected before the committee at the National Assembly on Tuesday, October 6, to explain transactions flagged in the Auditor-General for the Federation’s reports.
The audit queries, covering the 2021, 2022 and 2023 financial years, raise questions over alleged irregular deductions, revenue management, procurement procedures, payments to contractors and non-remittance of statutory funds.
The committee, chaired by Bamidele Salam, representing Ede North/Ede South/Ejigbo/Egbedore Federal Constituency of Osun State, is empowered under the 1999 Constitution to scrutinise public expenditure and investigate alleged revenue losses and breaches of financial regulations.
A member of the committee, who spoke exclusively with The PUNCH on condition of anonymity, disclosed that the NNPCL and INEC would be among the major institutions facing questions when the committee resumes its public hearings.
According to the lawmaker, the Auditor-General’s 2021 report raised alleged financial queries of about N514bn against the NNPCL, while INEC faces questions over approximately N288.19bn contained in the Auditor-General’s 2022 report.
NNPCL: N514bn under scrutiny
The NNPCL is expected to provide explanations for a series of transactions contained in the audit findings.
According to the findings, about N343.64bn was allegedly deducted irregularly from domestic crude oil sales.
Another N83.66bn was reportedly flagged over alleged warehousing of miscellaneous revenue in a sinking fund account, while N82.95bn was questioned as alleged unauthorised deductions from Federation revenue.
The Auditor-General also reportedly flagged N3.75bn as a shortfall arising from the sale of petroleum products.
The committee is expected to demand supporting documents and explanations from the NNPCL before determining how the audit queries should be resolved.
INEC faces questions over 2019 election spending
INEC will also be asked to account for transactions relating to procurement, contractor payments and statutory deductions.
The committee member said some of the questions relate to spending during the tenure of former INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, who has since been appointed an ambassador.
“There are several audit queries concerning procurement procedures, payments made to contractors as well as failure to remit statutory deductions by the commission during the administration of the former INEC Chairman,” the lawmaker said.
He added that the committee would examine questions surrounding money spent from the 2019 general election.
One of the transactions already flagged in the Auditor-General’s 2022 report involves more than N5.31bn allegedly paid for the supply of smart card readers used for the 2019 general election without prior approval from the Bureau of Public Procurement.
The smart card readers were deployed by INEC during the 2019 election before the commission introduced the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System for the 2023 elections.
House begins marathon audit hearings
The NNPCL and INEC hearings form part of a wider examination of unresolved audit queries by the Public Accounts Committee.
The committee will begin questioning several agencies on Monday, October 5, including the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Federal Capital Territory Judicial Service Commission, Federal Colleges of Education in Okene and Gombe, and the University Teaching Hospital, Ilorin.
Other institutions scheduled for questioning on Tuesday include the National Mathematical Centre, National Power Training Centre, National Research Institute for Chemical Technology and the National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency, among others.
The committee member said accounting officers and subject matter experts from the NNPCL and INEC were expected to appear and respond to the queries.
However, the audit findings do not automatically establish criminality or wrongdoing. The affected institutions are entitled to respond to the Auditor-General’s queries, submit supporting documents and provide explanations before the committee reaches any conclusion.
Attempts to obtain Salam’s comments were unsuccessful, as calls to the lawmaker went unanswered. He also did not respond to messages sent via WhatsApp.
