KOYBLOG

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested Umar Isa, a former Chief Financial Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), over an alleged $7.2 billion fraud linked to the rehabilitation of the Kaduna, Warri, and Port Harcourt refineries,  reports.

Also in EFCC custody is Jimoh Olasunkanmi, a former Managing Director of Warri Refinery.

Umar Isa, who was in charge of fund disbursement for the turnaround maintenance of the three refineries, alongside other key officials of the NNPCL, is being investigated for allegations of abuse of office, corruption, diversion of funds, and receiving kickbacks from contractors.

Among those reportedly under investigation are Tunde Bakare, Managing Director of the Warri Refinery, and two former Managing Directors of Port Harcourt Refinery, Ahmed Dikko and Ibrahim Onoja.

Although EFCC’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, has yet to comment on the arrests, the development comes shortly after the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, led by Senator Aliyu Wadada, raised concerns about alarming financial discrepancies involving trillions of naira in the NNPCL’s audited accounts from 2017 to 2023.

The Senate described the financial records as disturbing and demanded explanations for 11 audit queries issued to NNPCL’s finance team, giving them one week to respond.

President Bola Tinubu had earlier sacked the entire NNPCL Board, including then Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari, on April 2, 2025, as part of a restructuring aimed at boosting operational efficiency, investor confidence, and local content participation in the oil sector.

While some industry watchers believed the shake-up was long overdue, others saw it as a timely intervention.

Mele Kyari, who led the company from July 2019 until his removal, had faced mounting calls for his resignation when he turned 60 in January 2025, though the president retained him until the recent overhaul.

Following the board’s dissolution, Tinubu appointed Bashir Ojulari as the new Group CEO and Ahmadu Kida as the non-executive chairman, along with a reconstituted 11-man board to steer the company forward.