‘Our laws catch rats while lions walk free, Oshiomhole slams selective justice.
A high-stakes session of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts descended into theater and fury on Wednesday as Senator Adams Oshiomhole launched a scathing attack on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). The former Edo State Governor declared that the state-owned oil giant has “no reputation” other than a notoriety for systemic corruption and fraud.
Oshiomhole, representing Edo North, spoke in support of a dramatic motion calling for the immediate arrest of the former Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL, Mele Kyari. The demand follows Kyari’s repeated failure to appear before the legislative panel to account for trillions of naira in allegedly unremitted and mismanaged public funds.
‘They Want Their Children to Benefit From the Theft’
The atmosphere in the committee room turned hostile when representatives of the state oil firm attempted to defend the institution’s image, arguing that the public’s eagerness to secure employment at the NNPCL reflected its prestige.
Oshiomhole fiercely rejected the claim.
“NNPC has no reputation. Your reputation is for fraud,” Oshiomhole fired back, cutting off attempts by officials to interject. “Do you think we are children? You say people want their children to be employed in NNPC. Yes, because it is a house of thieves, and they want their children to benefit from it. Let us call a spade a spade.”
The veteran labor leader insisted that the committee must move past procedural diplomacy and exercise its full constitutional powers to compel accountability.
“We cannot sit here and betray the very rules without which we cannot be here,” Oshiomhole warned, pointing to the constitutional provisions governing public audits.
The ‘Lion’ and the ‘Rats’: A Crisis of Justice
Expressing frustration over what he described as double standards in Nigeria’s anti-corruption war, Oshiomhole argued that high-ranking officials behave as though they are immune to the laws of the land.
“I hold the view that the law is only effective when it catches a lion, not when you detain a rat or a rabbit,” he said. “A man who stole a rat or a rabbit is jailed, while those accused of diverting trillions are allowed to walk free. That is the fundamental crisis of Nigeria.”
Addressing reports that the former NNPCL boss was currently in Germany receiving medical care, Oshiomhole questioned why public officers who run down national institutions are permitted to escape the consequences of their mismanagement.
“Why does he have the money to pay for medical bills in Germany while those who are dying here have nothing? We must have the courage to deploy our constitutional powers and issue an arrest warrant—not tomorrow, but today. We want him brought here, dead or alive in law. Even if he is deceased, we want the body to account for these trillions.”
No Proxy representation for Alleged Financial Crime
The committee rejected attempts by NNPCL delegates to speak on Kyari’s behalf. Oshiomhole argued that administrative accountability cannot be delegated, especially after an official has left office.
“Mele Kyari cannot be represented by a proxy. He is no longer the Managing Director, and his responsibility is to account for the decisions made during his tenure,” the Senator insisted. He also criticized the absence of the current NNPCL management, warning that the committee would not tolerate a culture of evasion.
Using a military analogy, Oshiomhole urged the Senate to stop firing “warning shots.”
“The reason Nigerians no longer fear the police is because they fire into the air to scare. But people fear the army because when a soldier carries a weapon, his intention is to bring down the target. Under this committee’s leadership, we must end the exceptions and the excuses. We must arrest both the past and present leadership of the NNPC for their total disregard of the Nigerian Constitution.”
A Constitutional Showdown
Supporting the motion, Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi (Ebonyi North) revealed that this was the ninth time the statutory committee had convened to address the specific audit discrepancies without Kyari showing up.
“On three occasions, I personally presided, and the GCEO failed to appear,” Nwebonyi said. “This committee was not created by the standing rules of the Senate; it is one of the few statutory committees explicitly established by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. That underscores its gravity.”
Nwebonyi added that waiting any longer for Kyari’s voluntary appearance would amount to a “wild goose chase,” formally seconding the motion for the issuance of an arrest warrant.
The Senate’s move sets up a major constitutional showdown between the legislature and the former leadership of the country’s most powerful economic organ. With trillions of naira in oil revenues unaccounted for at a time when Nigeria is grappling with severe fiscal deficits and rising debt, pressure is mounting on the anti-graft agencies to enforce the Senate’s directive.
