The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has demanded urgent accountability from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) following revelations that N500 billion in oil revenue generated in the last quarter of 2024 remains unaccounted for.
The call comes on the heels of a damning World Bank disclosure, which stated that NNPCL remitted only N600 billion of the N1.1 trillion it earned from crude oil sales and related income between October and December 2024.
This leaves a staggering N500 billion unremitted to the Federation Account, a development SERAP has described as “a grave violation of public trust.”
In a Freedom of Information (FOI) request dated May 17, 2025, and signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, SERAP urged NNPCL’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr Bayo Bashir Ojulari, to provide a full explanation for the shortfall.
The group also called for the identification of those responsible for the alleged disappearance of funds and the immediate initiation of steps to ensure prosecution and recovery.
“The country’s oil wealth ought to be used solely for the benefit of the Nigerian people and for the sake of present and future generations,” the organisation wrote.
SERAP argued that the failure to remit such a significant sum contravenes the Nigerian Constitution, national anti-corruption laws, and international obligations under the United Nations Convention against Corruption.
According to SERAP, this incident is emblematic of broader systemic failings within Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The organisation cited multiple reports by the Auditor-General of the Federation and the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), which have consistently documented recurring financial irregularities and unaccounted funds in the NNPCL.
“The missing oil revenue reflects a failure of NNPCL's accountability more generally and is directly linked to the institution’s continuing failure to uphold the principles of transparency and accountability,” SERAP stated.
To ensure thorough investigation and potential recovery of the missing funds, SERAP has called on Nigeria’s anti-corruption bodies, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to wade into the matter immediately.
“If we have not heard from you within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel the NNPCL to comply with our requests in the public interest,” the group warned.
The organisation further emphasised that if properly managed and fully remitted, the missing N500 billion could have significantly contributed to addressing Nigeria’s deepening socio-economic challenges.
This includes expanding access to healthcare, education, infrastructure, and social services at a time when Nigerians are grappling with rising poverty and inflation.
“Despite the country’s enormous oil wealth, ordinary Nigerians have derived very little benefit from oil money primarily because of widespread grand corruption, and the entrenched culture of impunity of perpetrators,” the group noted.
The World Bank’s revelation about the missing oil revenue has added to mounting international concern about financial mismanagement in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has also advised the Nigerian government to redirect savings from the fuel subsidy removal into the national budget to benefit the wider populace.
SERAP cited Sections 13 and 15(5) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which require all public institutions to operate by transparency and accountability standards.
It also referenced a recent Supreme Court decision affirming that the Freedom of Information Act applies to all public records, including those held by NNPCL, strengthening public rights to demand accountability.
“Combating the corruption epidemic in the oil sector would alleviate poverty, improve access of Nigerians to basic public goods and services, and enhance the ability of the government to meet its human rights and anti-corruption obligations,” SERAP concluded.
The organisation also reminded NNPCL of Nigeria’s binding commitments under international law, specifically the UN Convention against Corruption, which obliges member states to ensure transparent management of public resources and hold wrongdoers accountable.
As of the time of this report, NNPCL has not responded to SERAP’s FOI request and has not publicly addressed the concerns raised by either SERAP or the World Bank.
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