For the fourth time in under two months, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.), Engineer Bashir Ojulari, has failed to appear before the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, intensifying a standoff over financial discrepancies amounting to N210 trillion.

Ojulari, summoned to respond to audit queries spanning 2017 to 2023, was once again absent at Tuesday’s investigative hearing. The absence drew sharp criticism from lawmakers, who accused the NNPCL boss of showing brazen disregard for parliamentary authority.

In a letter signed by NNPCL’s Chief Financial Officer, Adedayo Segun, and addressed to the Committee Chairman, Senator Aliyu Wadada, the GCEO claimed he was summoned for an urgent appointment with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Presidential Villa.

But senators were not convinced.

“That letter is suspicious. Using the Presidency as an excuse not to appear shouldn’t be accepted. We should escalate this to the President himself,” Senator Victor Umeh said.

Umeh recommended a formal petition to President Tinubu, insisting Ojulari should propose a date of his choosing to appear—rather than hide behind shifting schedules.

“Let him not tell us next time that it’s the Vice President. This isn’t personal; these are audit queries,” Umeh stated.

Other senators echoed the frustration.

Senator Joel-Onowakpo Thomas said the NNPCL GCEO appeared to have made up his mind not to honor the summons.

“This is the fourth time. I’m beginning to think he believes he’s not answerable to us. That’s unacceptable.”

Senator Aminu Abbas, who was blunt, said, “Ojulari is not bigger than Nigeria. He cannot be bigger than this institution. He must appear tomorrow—or we close the chapter.”

In his concluding remarks, Senator Wadada, who chairs the Committee, decried what he described as “institutional contempt” by the GCEO.

“The GCEO is way below the National Assembly. We are sitting on mandate; he sits on appointment. He can be removed tomorrow,” Wadada said.

Addressing CFO Adedayo Segun directly, Wadada added: “We’re not his aides. He should communicate with us respectfully. No GCEO is bigger than the National Assembly. Even the President respects this institution—that’s why he appears before us.”

The committee has now issued a final ultimatum, ordering Ojulari to appear on Wednesday by 3:00 PM, or face possible escalation, including referral to the Presidency and further parliamentary sanctions.