We uncovered \u2018mind-boggling\u2019 fraud at NNPCL \u2014 EFCC Chairman<\/p>\n
Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that a preliminary probe into the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has exposed \u201cmind-boggling\u201d corruption in the organisation.<\/p>\n
Speaking on Wednesday during the third day of the National Conference on Public Accounts and Fiscal Governance\u2014organised by the Public Accounts Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives in Abuja\u2014Olukoyede said the EFCC had only just begun examining the NNPC Limited\u2019s books. Yet, early findings already pointed to entrenched financial malfeasance.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the last three weeks, we launched a commission-wide investigation into the extractive industry, particularly the oil and gas sector. What we have discovered is mind-boggling,\u201d Olukoyede said. \u201cAnd we have only just opened the books. If this is what we\u2019re seeing at the surface, imagine what lies beneath.\u201d<\/p>\n
President Bola Tinubu had in April sacked Mele Kyari as Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, replacing him with Bashir Ojulari. Kyari had led the state-owned oil firm since 2019.<\/p>\n
The EFCC chairman noted that the discoveries so far represent only a fraction of the rot within the oil and gas sector, stressing that systemic fiscal mismanagement is a major contributor to Nigeria\u2019s economic and security crises.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a very strong connection between the mismanagement of our resources and insecurity. When you look at banditry, kidnapping, terrorism\u2014trace it back, and you will find a pattern of corrupt practices and diversion of funds meant to improve people\u2019s lives,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Olukoyede urged the National Assembly to pass legislation that would criminalise unexplained wealth, arguing that the current legal framework impedes the Commission\u2019s ability to act swiftly against suspects with disproportionate assets.<\/p>\n
\u201cHelp me pass the Unexplained Wealth Bill. I\u2019ve been begging for the past year. This same bill was thrown out in the last Assembly. If we don\u2019t make individuals accountable for what they own, we\u2019ll never get it right,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Citing an example, he said: \u201cSomeone has worked in a ministry for 20 years. We calculate their entire salary and allowances. Then we find five properties\u2014two in Maitama, three in Asokoro. Yet we\u2019re told to go and prove a predicate offence before we can act. That is absurd.\u201d<\/p>\n
He explained that the proposed bill would make it a strict liability offence for individuals to possess assets grossly beyond their known and legal income sources.<\/p>\n
Olukoyede also revealed that the Commission is currently tracking illicit assets across several jurisdictions, including the U.S., Turkey, and, unexpectedly, Iceland.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast month alone, I visited four or five countries chasing Nigeria\u2019s stolen assets. An ambassador even told me they discovered an estate in Iceland owned by a Nigerian. Iceland of all places!\u201d he exclaimed.<\/p>\n
He admitted, however, that no anti-corruption agency\u2014regardless of its strength\u2014can recover more than half of what has been looted.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no amount of capacity I can build, no level of effort I can put in, that will enable me to recover even half of what has been stolen from Nigeria, because the custodians of those assets in foreign countries don\u2019t want to let go,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Olukoyede criticised foreign governments that refuse to repatriate stolen Nigerian assets, labelling them as accessories to the crime.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnder international law, the custodian of stolen assets is just as guilty as the original thief,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He further decried the culture of impunity in Nigeria\u2019s public service, where individuals under prosecution are often celebrated, and financial compliance is widely ignored.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see people who have stolen our money. We have shown you evidence. We\u2019ve traced where the money went. We are already in court. Yet, they\u2019re being celebrated all over the place. Does that show we\u2019re serious?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
Olukoyede said more than 700 federal Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) still operate without adequate internal controls and questioned the National Assembly\u2019s capacity to properly oversee them all.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many books can you check? How many files will you read? We need to build strong internal compliance systems that can proactively checkmate corruption,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n
He emphasised that corruption is stifling Nigeria\u2019s development potential. According to him, an internal EFCC analysis presented during his Senate confirmation showed that 90 per cent of stolen public funds in one year were moved abroad.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat money could have built hospitals, schools, and supported millions of Nigerian students from primary to tertiary level,\u201d he said. \u201cNigeria has no business borrowing to survive, given the natural and mineral wealth it possesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olukoyede called on political leaders to unite across party lines and ethnic divides to confront corruption, warning that the current administration might be Nigeria\u2019s last chance to get things right.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we execute even 60 per cent of our capital budget efficiently between 2025 and 2026, we will empower small and medium-scale industries. We\u2019ll build infrastructure. We\u2019ll be fine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we need is transparency in revenue generation and accountability in public expenditure,\u201d he stressed.<\/p>\n
He urged lawmakers and the Nigerian public to ignore resistance from vested interests and online trolls.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is about rescuing the soul of Nigeria,\u201d Olukoyede concluded. (The Guardian)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We uncovered \u2018mind-boggling\u2019 fraud at NNPCL \u2014 EFCC Chairman Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that a preliminary probe into the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has exposed \u201cmind-boggling\u201d corruption in the organisation. Speaking on Wednesday during the third day of the National Conference on Public Accounts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":146681,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[79,18,358,20],"tags":[132,440,1515,436],"class_list":{"0":"post-146991","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"category-news","9":"category-special-report","10":"category-the-nation","11":"tag-efcc","12":"tag-fraud","13":"tag-national-assembly","14":"tag-nnpcl"},"yoast_head":"\n