A damning audit has revealed over ₦514 million discrepancy in Nigeria’s Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
Unverified payments, tax violations, and questionable expenditures highlight weak oversight, with the ministry urged to justify its actions or face sanctions.
In 2021, the Auditor-General uncovered that Nigeria’s Ministry of Petroleum Resources mismanaged over ₦514 million in public funds.
The report revealed several financial irregularities, raising serious concerns about accountability and compliance.
Mismanagement Of Funds For Niger Delta Projects
To begin with, in January 2021, the ministry paid ₦232.5 million to seven consultancy firms for stakeholder engagement to address militancy in the Niger Delta.
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However, auditors found no evidence of venue use, with only one payment voucher available for review.
Furthermore, they criticised the ministry for taking on this task instead of agencies like the NDDC or NNPC, which are directly responsible for such issues.
Irregular Payments And Tendering Processes
Additionally, the audit exposed a ₦49.488 million payment to a logistics firm, where the ministry bypassed competitive bidding and failed to provide proof of contract acceptance or technical evaluations.
Similarly, it flagged a ₦2.9 million payment to a security official that lacked supporting documents.
Unauthorised Expenditures And Tax Violations
Moreover, the ministry spent ₦137.75 million from its capital budget on unauthorised expenditures, blatantly violating financial regulations.
It also failed to deduct and remit ₦25.5 million in statutory taxes, contravening treasury rules.
Suspicious Ceiling Repairs And Unretired Advances
In another instance, the ministry spent ₦43.53 million on ceiling repairs in five instalments.
This irregular expenditure raised suspicions of potential fund diversion.
On top of that, the ministry failed to retire ₦74.72 million in cash advances, breaching financial guidelines.
Accountability And Oversight Measures
The Auditor-General attributed these failures to weak internal controls and instructed the ministry’s permanent secretary to justify the payments, recover the funds, or face sanctions.
Ultimately, these findings cast doubt on the leadership of then Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva and President Muhammadu Buhari, who also served as Minister of Petroleum Resources.
Consequently, oversight bodies now face the challenge of ensuring the ministry is held accountable for these anomalies.
