The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has issued a seven-day ultimatum to President Bola Tinubu to address allegations of corruption in Nigeria’s oil sector, including the disappearance of over N26 billion.
In a statement released on February 1, 2025, SERAP called on President Tinubu to direct the Attorney General, Lateef Fagbemi, and anti-corruption agencies to investigate the missing funds, which were allegedly stolen, diverted, or mismanaged from the Petroleum Technology Development Fund and the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources in 2021.
“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal action to compel your government to comply with our request in the public interest,” the letter, signed by SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, read.
The allegations, which stem from the 2021 annual audited report released by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation on November 13, 2024, reveal significant financial mismanagement, with funds reportedly unaccounted for or spent without due process.
“The allegations suggest a grave violation of public trust, the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended), the country’s anti-corruption legislation, and international anti-corruption obligations,” SERAP said.
The organization is calling for the immediate prosecution of those responsible for the mismanagement of the funds, along with the full recovery and remittance of any missing funds back into the national treasury. It also recommended that the recovered funds be allocated to address Nigeria’s budget deficit and ease its mounting debt crisis.
The Auditor-General’s report highlights several questionable expenditures by the PTDF and the Ministry of Petroleum, including over N25 billion paid for contracts without supporting documents, unaccounted-for bank deposits of N326 million, and N107 million spent on a library automation system without approval from the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).
Further discrepancies were also reported, such as N46 million paid for services that lacked evidence of execution, N60 million in stamp duty fees from capital expenditure contracts that were unremitted, and N137 million spent on recurrent expenditures without National Assembly approval. The report also mentioned N232 million allocated to seven companies for “stakeholders’ engagement in the Niger Delta” with no further details.
“The Auditor-General fears the money may have been diverted. He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury,” the report noted.
SERAP emphasized that tackling corruption in the oil sector is essential to addressing Nigeria’s financial challenges. Despite the country’s vast oil wealth, ordinary Nigerians have seen little benefit due to widespread corruption and impunity, the group said.
“The country’s wealth ought to be used solely for the benefit of the Nigerian people and the sake of present and future generations,” SERAP’s letter concluded, reiterating its demand for immediate investigations, prosecutions, and the recovery of stolen funds.
