The Association of Northern Nigerian Students has opposed the appointment of Dr Bala Wunti as the pioneer Chief Executive Officer of the World Energy Council Nigeria, demanding an investigation into his alleged involvement in unresolved financial issues surrounding the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
The North Central Zonal Coordinator of the association, Comrade Sagir A. Sardauna, made the demand in a statement issued in Abuja, saying the appointment should be reversed until the controversies surrounding Wunti and other former NNPCL officials are conclusively addressed.
Sardauna said the appointment could undermine public confidence in government institutions, particularly among young Nigerians who, he said, were increasingly concerned about accountability in public affairs.
Wunti’s name, according to him, featured in proceedings before the Senate Public Accounts Committee concerning audit queries involving figures totalling about ₦210tn.
The amount reportedly consists of about ₦103tn in accrued expenses and liabilities and another ₦107tn in sundry receivables arising from NNPCL-related accounts covering the 2017–2023 period.
The association, however, clarified that the ₦210tn figure should not be regarded as evidence that the funds were stolen or missing.
It acknowledged that Wunti, alongside former NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, former Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajia, and other officials, had appeared before the Senate committee to provide explanations.
According to ANNS, the officials maintained that the figures largely represented accounting entries and should not be interpreted as evidence of missing cash.
Despite the explanations, Sardauna said the absence of a clear and final public resolution had left legitimate questions about accountability.
“While Dr Wunti and others have appeared before the Senate and offered explanations framing the sum as a misinterpretation of accounting entries rather than missing cash, no final, conclusive public findings, indictment, or clearance have been issued by the Senate or any anti-graft agency to date,” he said.
He argued that public institutions should not dismiss concerns surrounding large financial discrepancies without providing Nigerians with definitive findings.
“Nigeria cannot continue to normalise appointments that ignore public concerns and unresolved allegations of this magnitude,” Sardauna said.
He called on the EFCC and ICPC to independently investigate the NNPCL-related audit queries and publish their findings.
The student leader further urged the agencies to prosecute any person found culpable after the investigations.
“We demand that the EFCC and ICPC go deeply into the ₦210tn NNPCL case involving Dr Bala Wunti and the others, publish their findings, and prosecute where necessary,” he said.
“Anything less is a betrayal of the Nigerian people.”
Sardauna also appealed to President Bola Tinubu, the Federal Government and the World Energy Council Nigeria to review Wunti’s appointment until the allegations were satisfactorily resolved.
He said appointments to strategic positions in the energy sector should inspire confidence and should not be clouded by unresolved financial controversies.
The association warned that retaining the appointment without addressing the concerns could further damage young Nigerians’ trust in the government’s commitment to transparency and accountability.
It said it was prepared to mobilise Nigerians for peaceful protests if the government failed to respond to its demands.
The group also threatened to convene an international press conference if the authorities failed either to reverse the appointment or provide what it described as “clear, verifiable validity and closure” through a transparent investigation.
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