Mele Kyari, former group CEO of Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, is in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged $2.9 billion refinery funds.
Kyari and some top officials of the national company who were recently relieved of their jobs are being questioned over allegations of mismanagement of funds and abuse of office.
According to TheCable, Kyari was taken into custody on Friday and is likely to spend the weekend at the anti-graft agency.
EFCC officials are keeping mum over the matter, although a leaked letter sent to Bayo Ojulari, the new GCEO, has been trending on social media.
In the letter, the commission requested for certified true copies of the allowances and emoluments of 14 officials, “including that of those who have retired and no longer work with your organization”.
The listed officials are: Abubakar Lawal Yar’ Adua, Mustapha Magaji Sugungun, Mele Kolo Kyari, Kayode Olusegun Adetokunbo, Isiaka Abdulrazak, Efiok Michael Akpan, Umar Ajiya, Babatunde Bakare, Dikko Ahmed, Jimoh Olasunkanmi, Ibrahim Onoja, Bello Kankaya, Ademoye Adeniyi Jelli, and Desmond Inyama.
Ojulari removed the managing directors of the three refineries in Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri during the week.
This sweeping move is aimed at halting “continued value erosion” in Nigeria’s refining sector.
The previous management, led by Kyari, spent billions of dollars on revamping the refineries but insiders say they are far from delivering optimal output.
Ojulari also inaugurated a high-level assessment team led by the executive vice president, downstream, Mumuni Dagazzau, to embark on an immediate operational assessment tour of all NNPC refineries to determine their current status and provide recommendations.
On Monday that the NNPC terminated the services of a number of senior staff members.
Bala Wunti, former chief of National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), and Ibrahim Onoja, managing director of the Kaduna Refinery, were asked to leave.
Lawal Sade, the chief compliance officer and former managing director of NNPC Trading, was also affected.
