On Wednesday, April 23, a sizable contingent of attorneys gathered at the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) office at the Ministry of Justice in Abuja, demanding an expeditious investigation into Mele Kyari, the former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
The attorneys, speaking on behalf of the Guardians of Democracy and Rule of Law, reportedly pledged to end corruption, especially in the oil industry, according to Naija News.
Barrister Emmanuel Agada and Jonathan Uchendu co-signed a petition in which they voiced their concerns about the many corruption claims made against Kyari during his time at NNPCL, attributing these problems to his “opaque” management style.
They brought up the controversial restreaming and rehabilitation of state-owned refineries, where large sums of money were spent, yet the financial information seemed erratic.
Matrix Energy Limited, which allegedly contributed $400 million to the Port Harcourt Refinery’s renovation even though the Federal Executive Council had approved $1.5 billion for the same repairs, was expressly highlighted in the petition.
They further noted that NNPCL allegedly owes Matrix Energy more over $2 billion, which is being paid off with daily crude oil allocations that have not been received.
The lawyers urged the AGF to examine all of the agreements that NNPCL made under Kyari’s direction, launch a comprehensive investigation into the questionable transactions, and form a commission of inquiry to look into how Kyari managed the refineries’ repairs.
Until Kyari is held responsible and the truth about the alleged corruption is known, the protesting lawyers promised to keep up their efforts.
The petition also stated: “The Guardians of Democracy and Rule of Law firmly think that addressing the core of this issue will assist the Federal Government in taking responsibility for the waste of public funds on the contentious refineries’ repairs carried out under the Kyari administration.
“In view of the facts stated above, we request that the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation to immediately review all agreements entered into by the NNPCL under the Mele Kyari administration.
“An investigation into the questionable transactions would also point the government in the direction of what funds to recover and from whom, which is sorely needed now, considering Nigeria’s economic condition.
“Furthermore, investigating all that transpired will set the stage for holding even the current leadership accountable while equally identifying potential pitfalls for those who are now in charge so that Nigeria is not caught in a loop of repeating the same mistakes.
“A fact-finding investigation be launched to ascertain how much the Federal Government has lost to such agreements and recommendations on concrete steps to recover identified funds. We demand for an immediate judicial review of all matters related thereto.
“The Guardians of Democracy And Rule of Law will appreciate it if the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation can escalate the issue to a point where the Federal Government institutes a commission of inquiry into NNPCL’s handling of the refineries’ repairs under Kyari and the sacked board.”
According to Daily Post, a deputy Director at the office of the AGF, Winifred Adekunle, who received the petition, promised to deliver it to the
minister and assured that prompt action will be taken.
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