CNPP Insists Mele Kyari Must Go, Demands Forensic Audit

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has re-echoed its call for the removal or suspension of the chief executive of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited by President Bola Tinubu, stressing it was necessary to “prevent any further manipulation or destruction of evidence.”

The group maintained that Mr Kyari has not performed beyond expectations and should be honourable to vacant the seat for another person.

In a statement issued by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr James Ezema, the umbrella body for all political parties in the country expressed dismay that the NNPC asked for an outstanding N4.56 trillion from the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) for selling petrol at a subsidized price between August 2023 and June 2024.

“This is despite the federal government’s repeated announcements that there are no subsidy payments for petrol in the country.

“We find it absurd and unacceptable that NNPC Limited would declare a net profit of N3.297 trillion in its 2023 Audited Financial Statement (AFS) and still bill FAAC a whopping N4.56 trillion subsidy reimbursement for petrol sold in just two months,” a part of the statement made available to Business Post noted.

The CNPP has, therefore, demanded an immediate explanation from NNPC on several issues, including how the company arrived at the figure of N4.56 trillion as subsidy reimbursement, the basis for this claim when the federal government has repeatedly announced that there are no subsidy payments, and how it can declare a net profit of N3.297 trillion and yet claim to have incurred a subsidy expense of N4.56 trillion in just two months.

The group has called for an independent forensic audit of the NNPC under Mr Kyari, covering 2020 to date, emphasising that, “A reputable international firm should conduct this audit and should cover all aspects of NNPC Limited’s operations, including its financial dealings, contracts, and acquisitions.”

The association also demanded the “evaluation of the acquired Oando assets to determine their true value and to ensure that NNPC Limited did not overpay for the said acquisition.”

“We strongly suspect that the reason for the impunity with which NNPC Limited’s management operates is based on presumed immunity due to Mele Kyari’s strong ties with Oando, which is operated by Wale Tinubu, suspected to be a nephew of President Bola Tinubu,” the CNPP added.

“We urge all allied civil society organizations in the country to be on standby as the CNPP shall be mobilizing for a total showdown if our questions are not answered properly,” it declared, calling on the National Assembly to take immediate action to investigate these allegations and to hold those responsible accountable for any wrongdoing.