The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked President Bola Tinubu to order an urgent investigation into more than N94.4bn in petroleum-sector funds allegedly diverted, unremitted, unaccounted for or irregularly spent.
SERAP said the funds were identified in the 2024 Volume 2 Annual Report of the Auditor-General of the Federation, published on August 7, 2026, with the findings covering various periods between January 2023 and December 2024.
In a letter dated October 3, 2026, and signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation urged Tinubu to direct the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission to account for the money.
It also asked the President to direct appropriate anti-corruption agencies to investigate the allegations, prosecute anyone found culpable where sufficient admissible evidence exists, and recover and remit all affected public funds to the Treasury.
SERAP said the authorities should publish a detailed schedule showing the amounts due, collected, remitted and recovered, the dates of transactions, institutions or officials responsible and the accounts into which the funds were paid.
“Every naira identified in the Auditor-General’s report must be properly accounted for,” the organisation said, adding that any oil funds found to have been diverted, misapplied, improperly spent or otherwise unaccounted for must be fully recovered and remitted to the Treasury.
The organisation said the findings raised serious questions about the management of petroleum revenues and gas-flaring penalties, particularly because some of the funds are intended for environmental remediation.
According to the Auditor-General, the MDGIF failed to remit N26.549bn in revenue from the sale of petroleum products between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2024. The audit report expressed concern that the money might have been diverted and recommended its recovery and remittance to the Treasury.
The fund was also reported to have failed to remit and report N12.480bn in gas-flaring penalties for 2023.
The Auditor-General raised concerns over the failure to collect and promptly remit net revenue generated by NUPRC from gas flaring into the MDGIF account, as required by Section 52(8) of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.
It warned that the failure to remit the penalties created risks of funding shortages for environmental remediation and potential civil crises arising from the non-remediation of environmental hazards.
NUPRC was also accused of failing to remit N38.610bn in gas-flaring penalties collected and due to MDGIF, with the Auditor-General again warning of possible shortages of funds for environmental remediation.
SERAP said MDGIF also allegedly failed to collect and account for N12.940bn in revenue from 2024 natural gas sales. The Auditor-General expressed concern that the money might have been diverted and recommended its recovery and remittance to the Treasury.
Other expenditures highlighted by the audit included N3.518bn paid by MDGIF to a consultant to recover gas-flaring penalties without presidential approval.
According to the Auditor-General, there was no evidence of due process or due diligence in the engagement, while the report raised concerns that the money may have been diverted.
MDGIF was also reported to have spent N261.852m on Transaction Advisors without evidence that the advisers executed any work. The Auditor-General expressed concern that the money might have been diverted.
A further N65.8m was reportedly spent on Transaction Advisors in August 2024 without due process. The Auditor-General said the expenditure may have violated public procurement procedures and recommended that the Executive Director of MDGIF account for it.
SERAP said the audit findings revealed repeated failures of basic financial and administrative controls, including failures to remit and account for public revenues, inadequate documentation, payments without evidence of work, and consultancy and procurement arrangements without the required approvals or due process.
It also faulted MDGIF for failing to submit and publish audited financial statements for 2022, 2023 and 2024, urging Tinubu to direct the fund to publish the statements and forward them to the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly as recommended by the Auditor-General.
“These findings concern petroleum-sector institutions and revenues over which the President, as Minister of Petroleum Resources, has a particular responsibility to ensure effective oversight, transparency and accountability,” SERAP said.
The organisation added that Tinubu’s dual role made it particularly important for the findings concerning billions of naira in petroleum revenues and gas-flaring penalties to be promptly investigated.
“Anyone found responsible should be appropriately sanctioned and prosecuted where sufficient admissible evidence is established, irrespective of status, position or institutional affiliation,” it said.
SERAP said the alleged failure to account for petroleum-product revenues, natural-gas sales and gas-flaring penalties undermined public confidence in the management of Nigeria’s petroleum resources and created a risk that money intended for lawful public purposes, including environmental remediation and protection of affected communities, could have been lost or misapplied.
It also said the absence of supporting documentation for expenditures, payments without evidence of work performed and contracts without required approvals raised concerns about safeguards over public funds.
The organisation cited Sections 13, 14 and 15(5) of the 1999 Constitution, which require government to apply the principles in Chapter II, make the security and welfare of the people its primary purpose and abolish corrupt practices and abuse of power.
SERAP also referenced Nigeria’s obligations under the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption.
It noted that Article 9 of the UN convention requires transparent, competitive and objective systems for public procurement and public finances, while Article 10 promotes transparency in public administration and Article 13 recognises the role of civil society and public participation in combating corruption.
SERAP gave the government seven days from receipt or publication of its letter to act, warning that it would consider legal action and other lawful measures if its demands were not met.
The organisation said urgent action was necessary to ensure that public funds were recovered and that those responsible for any wrongdoing were held accountable.
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