The Federal Government is set to announce the hiring of an external auditor to verify fuel subsidy claims made by the nation’s oil firm, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
Reports say the yet-to-be-named auditor will assist the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation in determining the real amount owed by the government.
This development comes five months after the plan was proposed at the monthly Federation Allocation Accounts Committee meeting in April 2024.
NNPC claimed an outstanding of ₦6tn but was reduced to ₦2.7tn after an initial audit by an audit firm, KPMG (Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler).
Recall that on May 30, 2023, a few hours after the “subsidy is gone” declaration by President Bola Tinubu, the NNPC Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, told State House correspondents that the Federal Government still owed the firm the sum of ₦2.8tn spent on petrol subsidy.
He said, “Since the provision of the N6tn in 2022 and ₦3.7tn in 2023, we have not received any payment from the Federation.
“That means they (the Federal Government) are unable to pay and we’ve continued to support this subsidy from the cash flow of the NNPC. We are waiting for them to settle up to ₦2.8tn of NNPC’s cash flow from the subsidy regime and we can’t continue to build this.”
The recent FAAC meeting revealed that a selection process for an external auditor by the procurement department of the finance ministry has begun, reports say.
The minute of the meeting reads, “On the forensic audit covering the period 2015 to 2021 to Authenticate NNPC/Federation Claims in Respect of ₦2.7tn withheld by NNPC Limited:
“The Director of Home Finance reported that the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation was still working on the matter, adding that the Procurement Department of the Ministry had also put structures in place for the engagement of an external auditor, who would assist OAuGF to carry out the assignment.”
