Former Group General Manager of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Bala Wunti, has told the Senate Committee on Public Accounts that there is no evidence in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited’s 2023 audited financial statements to support claims that ₦210 trillion is missing from the company’s accounts.
Wunti made the clarification while appearing before the Senate committee chaired by Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo (Gombe North), which is reviewing NNPC Ltd.’s 2023 audited financial statements.
According to him, the widely circulated ₦210 trillion figure resulted from a misinterpretation of accounting entries rather than the disappearance of public funds.
He explained that the amount was arrived at by incorrectly combining two separate balance sheet items—₦107 trillion recorded as sundry receivables, representing money owed to NNPC, and about ₦103 trillion recorded as accrued expenses, representing liabilities owed by the company.
“Receivables are money other people owe you, while accrued expenses are money you owe other people,” Wunti told the committee. “Accounting standards require that these items be reported separately. They cannot simply be added together and described as missing money.”
The former NAPIMS chief, who led the agency from March 2020 before becoming Chief Offshore Investment Officer of NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services (NUIS) until December 2024, said he reviewed the audited accounts at the committee’s request and found no reference to any missing ₦210 trillion.
He maintained that no fraud or missing funds were reported during his tenure, adding that NNPC’s financial reporting is more complex than that of a conventional commercial organisation because it combines commercial operations with the management of petroleum assets on behalf of the federation and strategic national energy responsibilities.
Wunti also dismissed reports that ₦5.8 billion was spent on incorporating NNPC Ltd. following the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). He stated that the actual statutory payments made to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) for filing fees and stamp duties amounted to about ₦2.45 billion.
According to him, the higher figure being circulated resulted from accounting entries recorded in separate books after one arm of the organisation made payments on behalf of government shareholders while another recorded the transaction for statutory reporting purposes.
“The only money paid was about ₦2.45 billion, and it went directly to government institutions. No third party received any payment,” he said.
Wunti called for stronger collaboration between NNPC Ltd., the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), and the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation to improve understanding of the company’s accounting framework and ensure clearer interpretation of its financial statements.
Speaking during the session, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo, said the committee had not found evidence that any money was missing from NNPC’s accounts.
He noted that the ongoing review is aimed at ensuring transparency and gaining a proper understanding of the company’s audited financial statements rather than validating allegations of missing funds.
The committee is expected to study Wunti’s written submission alongside the 2023 audited financial statements before deciding whether further clarification will be required, as its investigation into NNPC Ltd.’s accounts continues.
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