The Senate Committee on Public Accounts has ordered the arrest of former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, over his repeated failure to appear before the committee.
The decision was taken on Wednesday during a hearing into audit queries involving more than N210 trillion in NNPC transactions between 2017 and 2023.
The committee is investigating issues raised in reports by the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation concerning the finances of ministries, departments and agencies during the period under review.
NNPC Limited had been invited to respond to the audit observations, with the committee expecting current Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, to lead the company’s delegation.
Also invited were former Chief Financial Officer Umar Ajia, Bala Wunti, Mele Kyari and the company’s external auditors.
However, lawmakers expressed frustration after Kyari failed to appear at the resumed hearing.
Moving a motion for his arrest, Senator Victor Umeh said the former NNPC boss had shown disregard for the committee and the National Assembly by repeatedly ignoring invitations.
“Kyari should be here. We cannot wait for him to appear before us at his convenience,” Umeh said.
“It is a national emergency. Wherever he is in the world, he should cut short his trip and return to answer questions concerning these audit issues.
“We are talking about trillions of naira. The country is facing serious financial challenges, and Nigerians deserve to know what happened to these funds.”
Umeh argued that Kyari must personally account for the issues raised in the audit report and urged the committee to issue a warrant for his arrest.
However, Senator Tony Nwoye appealed for caution, informing the committee that Kyari had assured him he would honour the invitation.
According to Nwoye, information available to him indicated that the former NNPC chief is currently receiving medical treatment in Germany.
“I spoke with Mele Kyari about a week ago and he promised to appear before the committee. But I learnt last night that he is hospitalised in Germany,” Nwoye said.
His explanation failed to convince some members of the committee.
Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi argued that Nwoye was not in a position to defend Kyari’s absence, noting that the former NNPC chief had allegedly ignored committee invitations on nine different occasions.
Nwaebonyi backed the motion for his arrest, insisting that the committee could no longer tolerate what he described as persistent disregard for its summons.
Following a unanimous voice vote, the committee chairman, Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo, approved the motion and ordered that a warrant of arrest be issued against Kyari.
