A coalition of lawyers and civil society organizations (CSOs) made their way to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) headquarters in Abuja on Friday morning, delivering a petition demanding an investigation into Mele Kyari, the former Group CEO of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
The petition accuses Kyari of tax evasion, economic sabotage, and abuse of office during his tenure from July 2019 to February 2025. The petitioners, led by Asika Raymond of the Guardians of Democracy and Rule of Law, claim Kyari colluded with consultants and contractors to inflate the costs of refinery rehabilitation projects and evade taxes owed to the government.
One of the key examples cited was the Port Harcourt Refinery, where the petitioners allege the NNPCL under Kyari’s leadership spent $1.5 billion on rehabilitation, far exceeding the original estimate of $1 billion for all three refineries. The petitioners also raised questions about the transparency of payments to consultants and contractors involved in the refinery projects.
Further allegations included the diversion of crude oil allocations and financial transactions under the guise of “pipeline security” at a suspicious rate of 80,000 barrels per day, with no clear accountability process. The petition also highlighted irregularities in the AKK Gas Pipeline Project, initially valued at $5 billion, and concerns about fuel subsidy fraud.
The petitioners raised alarms about NNPCL’s crude-backed loans, which reached $21.565 billion since 2019, questioning their legitimacy and impact on Nigeria’s finances. Additionally, they accused Kyari of overseeing unaccounted-for oil exploration projects, running into billions of Naira without clear documentation or economic benefits.
The group called on the EFCC to investigate Kyari, audit all payments to contractors from 2019 to 2025, recover any misappropriated funds, and collaborate with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to probe suspected tax evasion.
EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, accepted the petition on behalf of the EFCC Chairman, assuring the group that the commission would take swift action on the matter.
