Otedola: ₦2 Trillion Fuel Subsidy Fraud Rocked Jonathan Era

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Billionaire businessman, Mr. Femi Otedola, has alleged that more than N2 trillion was siphoned through fraudulent fuel subsidy claims under former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, warning at the time that the policy framework was rewarding rent-seeking and corruption instead of transparency and innovation.

In a strongly worded statement on Tuesday addressing ongoing issues in the downstream petroleum sector, Otedola said the subsidy scheme was tied to depot licences and disproportionately benefited members of the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN). He narrated that he personally warned the ex-President that he was being misled by “fraudulent oil marketers,” but that entrenched interests resisted reform.

Otedola, who congratulated Aliko Dangote on the success of the Dangote Refinery so far, described the refinery’s operations as a “historic leap” for Nigeria’s energy independence, logistics chain and economic future.

He praised President Bola Tinubu for having “the political will to execute full deregulation of the downstream sector,” saying the move has broken the grip of entrenched interests, ushering in a new era of transparency, healthy competition and customer-centric service delivery.

“Over N2 trillion was siphoned through questionable claims, all tied to depot licences. The policy rewarded neither transparency nor innovation; it encouraged rent-seeking and corruption,” Otedola stated. “I personally warned President Goodluck Jonathan that he was being misled. The system was built to benefit depot owners, and DAPPMAN members became the primary beneficiaries.”

The businessman took aim at DAPPMAN, a group of oil marketers that has been sparring with Dangote Refinery in recent days over alleged monopoly claims. Recalling that he founded DAPPMAN in 2002 to challenge major marketers and fill supply gaps, he argued that “times have changed” and that many of the association’s members are now clinging to assets that “no longer reflect today’s business realities.”

He advised current depot owners to “sell or restructure” rather than resist progress, pointing out that Nigeria’s storage capacity exceeds 4 million metric tons, most of it idle, and that domestic production by Dangote Refinery has erased old import-driven inefficiencies.

“DAPPMAN had its place but today, its relevance is fast fading. We must stop clinging to outdated privileges and focus on a new era built on self-sufficiency, transparency, and sustainable value creation. Aliko’s refinery is not the problem. It is the solution. Let’s move forward,” Otedola said.

He also highlighted the environmental and logistical benefits of Dangote’s purchase of 8,000 brand-new CNG-powered trucks to distribute fuel nationwide, noting that depots employ few people compared to filling stations and no longer drive employment as claimed.

Otedola stressed that the pattern is not new, comparing it to the cement industry where import-dependent infrastructure was phased out once Nigeria became self-sufficient. “History has shown time and again: you can delay change, frustrate it, even sabotage it but you can never stop it,” he wrote.

The philanthropist, who once headed Zenon Oil and became Nigeria’s largest diesel supplier, called on oil marketers to invest in last-mile retail outlets or new value chains, suggesting that they could even acquire the Port Harcourt Refinery to prove their competitiveness.

He ended by urging stakeholders to stop resisting reform and instead embrace self-sufficiency, transparency, and sustainable value creation, while saluting Dangote’s efforts as transformative for the nation’s downstream sector.

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