By Ekuson Nw’Ogbunka in Abuja
The planned probe of the 2021 to 2023 Audit Reports on Nigeria’s oil and gas industry ran into trouble on Monday after key agencies shunned a public hearing organized by the Senate Public Accounts Committee.
The hearing, based on reports by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), was to run for three weeks and involve heads of agencies indicted in the audit.
However, at the opening session, the CBN, NDDC, and NUPRC failed to appear. NEITI management was also absent.
A visibly displeased *Senator Ibrahim Dankwabo, Chairman of the Committee, directed that all three agencies must appear “unfailingly” on Thursday, August 6, 2026, or face constitutional consequences.
Committee members condemned the snub as an affront to legislative oversight.
“The powers of this committee are derived from Sections 47 and 60 of the 1999 Constitution. It is a distraction for any agency to refuse to appear and answer audit queries,” said Senator Babangida Hussaini.
Senator Patrick Ndubueze added: “This reflects the level of commitment of government agencies. No letter, no excuse, no representative. They don’t deserve a second chance.”
Despite the boycott, the committee said it would continue with the hearing today with expected appearances from the Office of the National Security Adviser, NMDPRA, RMAFC, and other agencies.
