Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has challenged President Bola Tinubu’s administration to publish detailed records behind the ₦11.2 trillion in receivables NNPC recorded from the Federation, including the portion linked to oil and gas asset protection and pipeline security.
Atiku made the demand through a statement issued on Sunday by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council. He asked the Federal Government to disclose how much was spent on pipeline surveillance, who received the payments, what contracts were awarded and what results were achieved.
Key Highlights
- Atiku Abubakar wants details of NNPC’s ₦11.2 trillion receivables from the Federation, including the portion tied to pipeline and oil-asset security.
- NNPC’s 2025 audited accounts classify the amount as “other receivables from Federation.”
- The accounts say the figure includes advances and costs incurred to protect oil and gas assets.
- NNPC’s energy-security cost receivable stood at about ₦8.67 trillion at the end of 2025.
- The ₦11.2 trillion should not be read as entirely new cash expenditure incurred during 2025.
- Atiku also questioned the link between pipeline-security contracts and Tinubu’s 2027 campaign, a political allegation not backed by any established finding.
Atiku Questions NNPC’s ₦11.2 Trillion Receivables
Atiku’s demand follows the disclosure in NNPC’s 2025 audited financial statements showing approximately ₦11.2 trillion in other receivables from the Federation.
According to reporting based on the accounts, the receivables relate to advances to the Federation and costs incurred in protecting Nigeria’s oil and gas assets under an approved framework between NNPC and the Federal Government.
The accounts showed that energy-security cost receivables stood at approximately ₦8.67 trillion at the end of 2025, while other advances and receivables brought the broader figure to about ₦11.2 trillion.
Atiku is now demanding a more detailed breakdown of the figure.
Atiku Wants Pipeline Security Payments Disclosed
The former vice-president argued that Nigerians should know exactly how much of the NNPC receivables was associated with pipeline surveillance and protection of petroleum infrastructure.
“What was paid? Who was paid? For what work? Where are the results?” Atiku asked through the statement issued by Shaibu.
He said the government should provide details that go beyond the aggregate figure contained in the NNPC accounts.
The request includes information on contractors, payments and the outcomes of projects associated with protecting oil and gas infrastructure.
₦11.2 Trillion Not Entirely New 2025 Spending
The accounting treatment of the ₦11.2 trillion NNPC receivables is important to the debate.
The figure should not be understood as ₦11.2 trillion in fresh cash expenditure entirely incurred during 2025. NNPC’s accounts distinguish between energy-security costs and other receivables from the Federation.
The company said no new energy-security expense was recognised in 2025, compared with ₦7.13 trillion in 2024, following a reconciliation of outstanding energy-security costs with royalties, taxes and dividends owed by the government as of December 2024.
This distinction is central to understanding the ₦11.2 trillion figure and Atiku’s demand for greater disclosure.
Atiku Compares NNPC Figure With Defence Allocation
Atiku also drew attention to the size of the NNPC receivables compared with the Federal Government’s defence allocation.
The 2025 budget allocated about ₦3.1 trillion to the Ministry of Defence, according to a National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies working paper.
Atiku used the comparison to question the administration’s priorities, arguing that the amount associated with oil-sector claims and asset protection warranted greater public scrutiny.
However, the two figures represent different accounting and budgetary categories and should not be treated as equivalent measures of government spending.
Read also:
- NNPCL Posts ₦7.2 Trillion Profit After Tax in 2025 Despite 24% Revenue Drop
- Sanusi’s $49.8bn NNPC Claim Resurfaces As CBN Reforms Renew Debate On Oil Revenue Transparency
- Ex-IYC president urges Tinubu to ignore calls to cancel Tantita pipeline security contract
Atiku Demands Pipeline Contracts And Payment Records
Beyond the ₦11.2 trillion figure, Atiku called for the publication of contracts, procurement records, payment details and project outcomes connected to pipeline security and other major infrastructure projects.
He specifically referenced the pipeline surveillance arrangement involving Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited and also raised questions about the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway contract.
Atiku further called for disclosure of the procurement process, including competing bids, evaluation procedures and contract documents.
Atiku Raises 2027 Campaign Financing Questions
The ADC presidential candidate also questioned whether companies benefiting from federal contracts had contributed financially or materially to President Tinubu’s 2027 re-election campaign.
He alleged that some government contracts could be connected to campaign financing and called on the administration to disclose relevant relationships and payments.
These are political allegations made by Atiku and his campaign, rather than established findings of a regulatory or judicial investigation.
Reporting on the statement showed that the central demand was for the government to disclose contracts, payments and results associated with the NNPC receivables and pipeline-security arrangements.
NNPC Receivables Debate Deepens
The controversy follows recent attention to NNPC’s 2025 financial statements and the cost of protecting Nigeria’s oil and gas infrastructure.
The company’s accounts indicate that the Federal Government and NNPC operate under an approved framework allowing the national oil company to incur security-related costs and subsequently charge them to the Federation.
Atiku is now asking the government to go further by publishing the underlying contracts, payment records, beneficiaries and measurable outcomes.
As political parties prepare for the 2027 election, the Atiku NNPC ₦11.2 trillion controversy is likely to remain part of the wider debate over oil-sector spending, government transparency, pipeline security and campaign financing.
For more political updates, follow us on X.
