A forensic audit by renowned global accounting firm KPMG has revealed significant discrepancies in the fuel subsidy claims filed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). According to iWitnessLive, the audit found that NNPCL had inflated its fuel subsidy claims by ₦3.3 trillion.
Initially, NNPCL reported spending ₦6 trillion on fuel subsidies, with the government under former President Muhammadu Buhari covering a substantial portion of these costs. NNPCL’s Group CEO, Mele Kyari, stated that the federal government still owed the company ₦2.8 trillion for petrol subsidy payments, a claim made following President Bola Tinubu’s announcement of the subsidy removal. Despite provisions of ₦6 trillion in 2022 and ₦3.7 trillion in 2023, Kyari noted that NNPCL had not received any reimbursement from the government.
In response to KPMG’s findings, which reduced the claims to ₦2.7 trillion, the Nigerian Government plans a fresh audit of NNPCL’s ₦2.8 trillion subsidy claim, focusing on the period from 2015 to 2021. This new audit, led by the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (OAuGF), may involve external firms to ensure impartiality, as decided in a Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) session in March 2024. Minister of Finance Wale Edun reaffirmed President Tinubu’s commitment to this thorough investigation prompted by KPMG’s initial audit.