“Luxury Over Accountability: NNPC Board Flies to Kigali on Private Jets Amid ₦210tn Audit Scandal”
In a move that’s drawing outrage nationwide, the Board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) is set to fly to Kigali, Rwanda, this Friday for a high-end retreat—just days after the Senate raised alarm over discrepancies totaling more than ₦210 trillion in the company’s audited accounts.
Sources revealed to SaharaReporters that five private jets have been arranged to ferry the delegation, coordinated by Abdullahi Bashir-Haske, a politically connected oil entrepreneur and son-in-law to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
The board, led by Chairman Ahmadu Musa Kida and Group CEO Bayo Ojulari, has reportedly booked out the entire Kigali Marriott Hotel, one of East Africa’s most luxurious resorts. Room rates at the hotel average $320 per night, with the most expensive suites reaching nearly $3,800.
“This is a government-owned entity embroiled in a financial scandal of historic proportions, and instead of facing scrutiny, they’re escaping to luxury,” said a top oil sector source.
The trip’s timing has fueled suspicions that the retreat is a deliberate distraction from the ongoing audit probe—described by lawmakers as “mind-boggling”—into NNPC’s financial records between 2017 and 2023.
Senate Probe: ₦210tn Vanishes on Paper
Only on Wednesday, the Senate Committee on Public Accounts issued a one-week ultimatum to NNPC to explain glaring inconsistencies, particularly ₦103 trillion in unexplained accrued expenses and another ₦103 trillion in receivables—figures unsupported by documentation.
“This is not a rounding error. It’s an institutional crisis,” said Committee Chairman, Senator Aliyu Wadada. “From legal fees with no supporting contracts to duplicate financial reports, everything we’ve seen is alarming.”
Wadada criticized NNPC for finalizing and publishing its audited reports while internal reconciliations were still ongoing, warning that the company’s credibility is now in question—especially as it eyes an IPO in global markets.
Further complicating the puzzle, NNPC’s subsidiary, NAPIMS, declared ₦9 trillion in profit between 2017 and 2021, while the parent company posted a ₦16 billion loss over the same period.
“How does the child thrive while the parent collapses? The numbers don’t add up,” Wadada fumed.
Public Funds, Private Comfort
Critics say the Kigali retreat is a tone-deaf show of excess at a time when Nigeria is battling record-high inflation, fuel scarcity, and ballooning debt.
Multiple sources confirmed that four of the five private jets were arranged by Bashir-Haske, whose company, AA & R Investment Group, has a history of involvement in Nigeria’s oil deals.
While Bashir-Haske refused to comment directly, a third party who contacted SaharaReporters on his behalf denied any involvement with private jets or the retreat logistics—yet still pleaded with reporters not to publish the story.
“This is about luxury, not reform,” said an industry insider. “If they wanted to fix NNPC, they’d be meeting in Abuja or online—not sipping cocktails in Kigali.”
NNPC Mum Amid Backlash
Repeated attempts to reach NNPC’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Femi Soneye, were unsuccessful. Calls went unanswered, and text messages were ignored.
As public outrage brews, citizens are left wondering how a national oil company under fire for possible multitrillion-naira financial misconduct could justify such extravagance.
Meanwhile, the Senate awaits detailed answers to 11 urgent questions, as lawmakers pledge to invoke every oversight tool available to unravel what may be one of Nigeria’s biggest financial scandals to date.
credit: sahara reporters
