The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has challenged National Assembly to conduct forensic audit on the alleged missing 48 million barrel of crudes oil reported in the media.
The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mele Kyari, represented by the Chief Finance Officer, Umar Ajiy, who appeared before Joint Senate Committees on Finance and National Planning, explained that the allegation was unfounded and untrue.
Kyari, who spoke on Thursday, added that no ship leaves the country without clearance of the Nigerian Navy, adding that the committees can also verify from the Department of Petroleum Resources.
According to him: “There is nothing like missing 48 million barrels of crude oil.
“No ship leaves the country without clearance from Nigerian Navy and you can also confirm from DPR.
“As far as the NNPC is concerned, no barrel of crude oil is missing as falsely alleged and we are very ready to be investigated over it.
“We also encourage the commissioning of a forensic audit by the National Assembly at its own cost.”
The NNPC CFO also put it to the federal lawmakers that the yearly budget of the corporation is scrutinised and approved by them through consideration and passage of MTEF and FSP, which contains revenue projections of the agency along with those of the other ones.
He said: “Proposals such as our revenue projections, cost of operations are well stated in all MTEF/FSP documents made available to National Assembly for consideration and approval, the basis upon which the Nation’s budget is passed and signed into law.
“Meaning that it is you (National Assembly) that approves our yearly budget.”
The Chairman of the Joint Committee, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, had in taking up the oil corporation over the alleged missing barrels of oil, demanded for proven evidence and not verbal denial as done by NNPC through media advertorials.