The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari to establish a presidential panel of inquiry to investigate allegations of missing crude oil.
SERAP wants the investigation to focus on the 149 million barrels of crude oil reportedly missing, as documented in the 2019 audited reports by the Auditor General of the Federation and Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).
As per the 2019 audited report by the Auditor General, a whopping 107 million barrels of crude oil were lifted as domestic crude without any documentation or traceability.
Consequently, NEITI has reported a loss of 42.25 million barrels of crude oil in 2019. As a result, SERAP is strongly urging President Buhari to take the necessary actions to ensure that those responsible for exploiting the nation’s oil reserves are brought to justice and that any gains from the wrongdoing are entirely retrieved.
SERAP’s statement emphasizes that investigating the allegations and holding those responsible for the missing crude oil accountable would serve the public interest and bring an end to the perpetrators’ impunity. Consequently, the organization has given President Buhari seven days to respond to their request for action. If the government fails to comply, they will take legal action.