The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has urged President Bola Tinubu to order an investigation into more than N94.4bn in public funds reportedly diverted, unremitted, unaccounted for or irregularly spent by the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.
SERAP also called on the President to ensure the recovery and remittance of the affected funds to the Treasury and the prosecution of anyone found culpable.
The organisation made the demand in a letter dated October 3, 2026, signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, and addressed to Tinubu.
The letter was made available to PUNCH Online on Sunday.
According to SERAP, the allegations were contained in the Auditor-General of the Federation’s 2024 Volume 2 Annual Report, published on August 7, 2026.
The organisation said the audit findings raised serious questions about the management of petroleum revenues and gas-flaring penalties.
SERAP urged Tinubu “to direct the appropriate anti-corruption agencies to promptly investigate over N94.4 billion in public funds reportedly diverted, unremitted, unaccounted for or irregularly spent, and ensure the prosecution of anyone responsible where sufficient admissible evidence is established, as well as the recovery and remittance of all the affected public funds.”
It also called on the President to direct the MDGIF to submit and publish its audited financial statements for 2022, 2023 and 2024 and ensure that they are forwarded to the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly.
SERAP said the MDGIF allegedly failed to remit N26.549bn in revenue from the sale of petroleum products between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2024.
The Auditor-General reportedly expressed concern that the money might have been diverted and recommended its recovery and remittance to the Treasury.
The organisation also alleged that the MDGIF failed to remit and report N12.48bn in gas-flaring penalties for 2023.
It said the Auditor-General raised concerns over the failure to collect and promptly remit net revenue generated by the NUPRC from gas flaring into the MDGIF account, as required by Section 52(8) of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.
According to SERAP, the Auditor-General warned that the failure to remit gas-flaring penalties could lead to shortages of funds for environmental remediation and potential civil unrest arising from non-remediation of environmental hazards.
SERAP further alleged that the MDGIF engaged and paid a consultant N3.518bn to recover gas-flaring penalties without presidential approval.
The organisation said the Auditor-General found no evidence of due process or due diligence in the engagement and expressed concern that the money might have been diverted.
