Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi has slammed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL.
In a post on Friday via his x page, Obi described Nigeria as a crime scene.
Obi was reacting to reports that the Senate Committee on Public Accounts uncovered N210 trillion discrepancy in the audited financial statements of the NNPCL.
The committee, chaired by Senator Aliyu Wadada, at a hearing on Wednesday questioned conflicting figures presented by the NNPCL, especially on accrued expenses and receivables recorded between 2017 and 2023.
The official 2023 audited financial statements already in the public domain has it that the NNPCL recorded N103 trillion in accrued expenses and N107 trillion in receivables, totaling N210 trillion.
Reacting, Obi posted on X: “It is with the utmost sadness that I once again reaffirm what I have consistently said: Nigeria has become a crime scene.
“How else does one explain the recent revelation by the Senate, which uncovered the audited accounts of the NNPC from 2017 to 2023? The Senate uncovered ₦210 trillion in financial irregularities, ₦103 trillion in so-called “accrued expenses”, and another ₦107 trillion in unaccounted “receivables.” No documentation. No accountability. No consequences.
“This is not just another scandal, it is a clear and damning confirmation of a nation held hostage by monumental corruption.
“Our national budget within the said period of 2017 to 2023 is as follows:
2017 ₦7.440 trillion.
2018 ₦9.120 trillion
2019 ₦8.916 trillion
2020 ₦10.590 was initially approved and in June revised to ₦9.974 trillion due to COVID.
2021 ₦13.588 trillion.
2022 ₦17.130 trillion
2023 ₦21.830 trillion
“Total: ₦88.010 trillion
“Our total national budget within the said period was not up to 50% of the said financial discrepancies and irregularities.
“This is a criminal institutionalised betrayal of the Nigerian people and a grave threat to the future of the society our children will live in.
“No responsible nation can continue to function like this without confronting this truth. This criminality masquerading as governance must be stopped and dismantled for a better Nigeria.”
