ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Senate Public Accounts Committee has issued a one-week ultimatum to external auditors of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to account for more than N210 trillion in unreconciled figures contained in the company’s audited financial statements.

It said that auditors, who certified the accounts, could not evade responsibility for defending them.

The committee, chaired by Ibrahim Dankwambo, handed down the directive on Wednesday after a tense hearing during which lawmakers rejected repeated attempts by the auditors to refer questions back to the NNPCL, insisting that the figures they signed off on must be fully explained.

At the heart of the controversy are N107 trillion recorded as receivables and N103 trillion listed as payables in the company’s audited accounts.

The lawmakers said the figures remain unexplained because neither the NNPCL nor its auditors had produced schedules identifying the transactions, counterparties or calculations behind them.

The auditors, however, informed the committee that the supporting schedules formed part of their working papers and requested about two weeks to retrieve the documents.

The request was firmly rejected.

Dankwambo questioned why auditors, who had certified the accounts, could not immediately produce documents supporting the figures.

When you have figures in audited financial statements, there must be schedules showing exactly how those figures were derived. If those schedules already exist in your working papers, why do you need additional time before presenting them to this committee?” he queried.

But the audit firm said that the NNPCL remained its client and that detailed explanations should ordinarily come from the company, recalling that during an earlier hearing, lawmakers had agreed that NNPCL officials would explain the figures.

That position drew sharp criticism from the committee.

The committee said that NNPCL, being wholly owned by the Federal Government on behalf of Nigerians, could not invoke commercial secrecy to shield information from the Parliament.

“NNPCL belongs to the Nigerian people, not to private shareholders. Parliament has every constitutional right to examine its accounts, and no confidentiality agreement can override that responsibility,” a lawmaker said.

The auditors were thereafter discharged and directed to reappear before the committee within one week with the requested documentation.

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Justice Jude Onwugbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court sitting in Apo, Abuja, has ordered the final forfeiture of assets linked to Kogi-born businesswoman, Aisha Achimugu, to the Federal Government.

The assets include jewellery valued at N4.645 billion, 11 exotic vehicles worth N4.293 billion, $50,000 in cash, and N30 million.
The ruling was delivered on Thursday, July 16, 2026, following months of legal proceedings after the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) applied for the final forfeiture of the assets.

Justice Onwugbuzie held that the EFCC had successfully proved its case and consequently ordered the immediate and final forfeiture of the jewellery valued at N4,645,170,294.09, the 11 exotic vehicles worth N4,293,000,000, $50,000, and N30 million in cash to the Federal Government.

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

By Francesca Hangeior

Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Thursday ordered the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to maintain the status quo pending the determination of a suit instituted by Hon. (Engr.) Sesugh Kaaba.

Justice Ekwo gave the order after parties informed the court that they had exchanged processes in the suit, prompting the court to hold that issues had already been joined on the substantive matter.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1429/2026, was filed by Kaaba against the APC and INEC.

At the resumed hearing, counsel to the plaintiff, Mohammed Ndarani Mohammed, told the court that the matter was scheduled for the defendants to show cause why the reliefs sought in the plaintiff’s ex parte application should not be granted.

According to the judge, both defendants had complied with the court’s earlier order by filing affidavits to show cause, adding that the plaintiff had received and was ready to respond to the processes.

Counsel to the APC, S. D. Swem, confirmed that the party had filed its affidavit to show cause and a counter-affidavit to the motion on notice, but said its response to the originating summons was yet to be filed.

On his part, counsel to INEC, Oluwole Olukunle, informed the court that the commission had responded to all the processes filed by the plaintiff.

Justice Ekwo observed that by filing their respective processes, the parties had submitted to the court’s jurisdiction and joined issues on the substantive case.

The judge cautioned that once a matter is pending before a court, parties must refrain from taking steps capable of altering the subject matter of the litigation.

“Once a case is pending in court, parties are automatically restrained and if you go ahead to do any other thing, you are taking the law into your hands,” the judge said.

Counsel to the plaintiff thereafter urged the court to caution the APC against taking further actions while the suit was pending.

Justice Ekwo, however, clarified that he was merely stating the legal position and not giving advice to any of the parties.

In a brief ruling, the judge held that since parties had already joined issues on the substantive suit, it would serve the interest of justice to proceed with the hearing of the main case rather than expend judicial time on the pending ex parte application.
He subsequently adjourned the matter until July 21 for hearing and ordered all parties to maintain the status quo ante pending the determination of the suit.