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The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has urged President Bola Tinubu to order an investigation into the alleged diversion, non-remittance and irregular expenditure of more than ₦94.4 billion in petroleum-related revenues.
SERAP, in a letter dated October 3 and signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, asked the President to direct relevant anti-corruption agencies to investigate the allegations contained in the 2024 (Volume 2) Annual Report of the Auditor-General of the Federation.
The report, published on August 7, 2026, covers transactions and activities between January 2023 and December 2024, according to SERAP.
The organisation urged Tinubu to ensure that anyone found culpable is appropriately sanctioned and prosecuted, where sufficient admissible evidence is established, and that all funds found to have been misappropriated are recovered.
SERAP also asked the President to direct the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund, MDGIF, to publish its audited financial statements for 2022, 2023 and 2024 and submit them to the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly, in line with the Auditor-General’s recommendations.
According to the Auditor-General’s findings cited by SERAP, MDGIF failed to remit ₦26.549 billion generated from the sale of petroleum products between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2024, raising concerns that the funds may have been diverted.
The report also alleged that MDGIF failed to remit and report ₦12.479 billion in gas-flaring penalties for 2023, contrary to Section 52(8) of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.
Similarly, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, allegedly failed to remit ₦38.610 billion in gas-flaring penalties due to MDGIF.
The Auditor-General further reported that MDGIF paid ₦3.517 billion to a consultant for the recovery of gas-flaring penalties without presidential approval and without following due process.
Other findings cited by SERAP included the failure by MDGIF to collect and account for ₦12.940 billion generated from natural gas sales in 2024.
The report also questioned MDGIF’s expenditure of ₦261.8 million on Transaction Advisors, for which, according to the Auditor-General, there was no evidence that the jobs were executed. It further cited another ₦65.8 million payment for the engagement of Transaction Advisors in August 2024 without due process.
The Auditor-General warned that failure to remit gas-flaring penalties could result in inadequate funding for environmental remediation and potentially trigger civil unrest arising from the continued non-remediation of environmental hazards.
SERAP said the alleged failure to properly account for billions of naira in petroleum-related revenues undermined public confidence and created a serious risk that funds meant for environmental remediation could have been lost.
It therefore urged the President, who also serves as Minister of Petroleum Resources, to exercise his oversight responsibility by ensuring a full accounting of the funds.
The organisation specifically requested the publication of a detailed schedule showing the amounts due, collected, remitted and recovered, as well as the relevant dates, responsible officials and accounts involved.
SERAP gave the Federal Government a seven-day ultimatum to act, warning that it would consider legal action if the requested measures were not taken.
The organisation based its demands, among others, on Sections 13, 14 and 15(5) of the 1999 Constitution, which address the promotion of national objectives and the prevention of corrupt practices, as well as Nigeria’s obligations under the United Nations and African Union anti-corruption conventions.
