Senate declares war on NNPC GCEO Kyari, issues 24-hour deadline to appear

In order to defend the 2024 budget, Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, has been given a 24-hour ultimatum by the senate.

This was disclosed on Wednesday, December 6, 2023, by Senator Adeola Olamilekan, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations.

Despite their commitment to ensure the dismissal of the NNPC CEO and other key officers over the purported N12 trillion spent on turn around maintenance (TAM) of the nation’s refineries, the upper legislative chamber and Kyari have not developed a falling out.

Olamilekan, who requested that Kyari attend with the CEO of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), issued a warning, stating that Kyari’s non-appearance would disrupt the legislative process and weaken it.

apprehensions over the 2024 budget
According to Olamilekan, the two officials must provide a list of every company in Nigeria that has an OML license in operation, along with a daily total of all allowed production output.

The legislator voiced concerns about the NNPCL, claiming it belonged to the Federal Government and was accountable to it and the other three branches of government, for part of the funds needed to fund the 2024 budget.

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Recall that roughly two weeks prior, the Senate had established a battle line with NNPC following the company’s subsequent rejection of a second invitation to appear before a committee of the upper house investigating the N12 trillion spent on turnaround maintenance of the nation’s refineries between 2010 and 2023…
The Senate panel’s attempts to move the probe forward were impeded by Kyari’s absence, whose organization is at the center of the investigation. The red chamber threatened to fire and prosecute the officials implicated.
NNPCL, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and their subsidiaries are among the agencies that were invited; their chief executive officers did not show up but sent representatives instead, and the committee threatened to fire and imprison them.
Further information to come.