The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has detained Mele Kyari, the immediate past group chief executive officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), as part of a widening investigation into alleged misappropriation of funds and abuse of office within the state-owned oil giant.
TheCable has learned that Kyari was detained on Friday and is expected to remain in the custody of the anti-corruption agency throughout the weekend.
Efforts to get Dele Oyewale, the spokesman of EFCC, proved abortive at the time of filing this report.
EFCC’s investigation centres around the controversial $2.896 billion allocated for the rehabilitation of Nigeria’s three major refineries: Port Harcourt Refining Company, Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, and Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company.
Despite these substantial allocations, the refineries have continued to operate well below capacity, raising serious concerns about the utilisation of the funds.
Sources within the EFCC indicate that several other high-ranking officials, both former and current, are also under investigation.
This includes former Managing Directors of the refineries. The EFCC has formally requested detailed financial records from NNPCL, including emoluments and allowances of the individuals involved.
The investigation intensified following the discovery of large sums of money, reportedly around N80 billion, in personal accounts linked to one of the sacked managing directors.
(Business Day)
