By Chibuike Nwabuko
LAGOS (PRECISE POST) – Billionaire businessman and Chairman of Zenon Petroleum & Gas Ltd, Femi Otedola, @realFemiOtedola has strongly denied allegations linking him to the fuel subsidy fraud, describing the claims as “mischievous, malicious, and entirely false.”
Precise Post recalls that the accusations, made by Umar Sani, a former Special Adviser on Media to ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo, were dismissed by Otedola in a detailed rebuttal issued on his X handle on Monday.
Otedola stated that Sani’s publication was a calculated attempt to mislead the public and rewrite history by painting him as complicit in one of Nigeria’s most infamous corruption scandals.
According to Otedola, his company, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd, was never involved in the importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), the only product eligible for claims under the Petroleum Subsidy Fund (PSF). Instead, Zenon operated as a major importer of diesel, a product that was already deregulated before the PSF scheme came into effect.
“Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited was wholly an importer and trader of diesel with a market share in excess of 90%. We never traded in PMS and as such could not have claimed for subsidy under the PSF scheme,” Otedola stated.
He expressed dismay that someone who had held a position of public responsibility, like Sani, could make such a fundamental error, describing it as either “mischief or gross ineptitude.”
“I Was the Whistleblower” – Otedola Speaks on Exposing Subsidy Scam
Otedola revealed that he was the first to alert the then President Goodluck Jonathan about the fraud being perpetrated under the PSF scheme. Despite initial denials from the then Minister of Petroleum, Otedola said he escalated the matter to then-Senator Bukola Saraki, who in turn raised it on the floor of the Senate, triggering a broader investigation by the National Assembly.
“If I was complicit in subsidy theft, would I be the one to raise the alarm and blow the whistle on myself?” he asked rhetorically.
He challenged the credibility of Umar Sani’s motives, accusing him of attempting to rewrite well-documented events in order to smear his reputation.
Addressing the highly publicized bribery scandal involving Hon. Farouk Lawan, the former Chairman of the House Committee investigating the subsidy fraud, Otedola reiterated that the alleged bribe was part of a sting operation conducted in collaboration with the Department of State Security (DSS).
“The money was provided by the DSS, duly marked, and handed over to me under security surveillance. I then gave it to Farouk Lawan in line with the sting operation. That is on record,” he said.
He reminded the public that Lawan was eventually convicted and sentenced to five years in prison for bribery, and described any attempt to turn the case into an indictment against him as “laughable and ignorant.”
Otedola concluded his statement by urging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to authorize the release of the full Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede Committee Report on subsidy fraud, which he claims holds the key to exposing the real culprits behind the monumental fraud.
“It is on record that the Presidency at the time called on the late EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde, to halt the investigation. Nigerians deserve to know the truth,” he said.
As debates over the country’s fuel subsidy history continue to reverberate, Otedola’s statement marks a strong pushback against renewed efforts to implicate him in the scam, and a call for greater transparency in holding the true perpetrators accountable.
