A former aide to ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo, Umar Sani has kicked at the recent comments by billionaire businessman Femi Otedola on subsidy removal by the Tinubu’s administration.
Reacting, Sani described Otedola’s comments as “hypocritical, selective, and a convenient rewriting of history.”
Recall that Otedola recently revisited Nigeria’s controversial fuel subsidy regime during the past administrations, alleging that corruption was entrenched in the subsidy system.
ISUIKWUATO VOICE NEWSPAPER published last week where Otedola made accusations at members of the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN).
Otedola had accused the DAPPMAN of sustaining a corrupt model built on subsidy fraud and obsolete infrastructure.
He further alleged that “over N2 trillion was siphoned through questionable subsidy claims under the Jonathan administration.”
But reacting to Otedola’s claims, Sani in a statement posted on his X page, accused the billionaire businessman of hypocrisy.
He said, “The subsidy regime predates Jonathan and lasted decades. It was entrenched under Obasanjo. Continued under Yar’Adua. Remained during Jonathan’s time, and persisted under Buhari with even greater opacity.
“To lay the blame solely on Jonathan is misleading, especially as Otedola himself enjoyed enormous privileges during the era.”
Sani alleged that Otedola’s company, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd, once controlled up to 90 percent of diesel imports. And also benefitted heavily from the same subsidy framework he now condemns.
Sani recalled that Jonathan had set up the Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede forensic audit panel to unmask exploiters of the subsidy system. He added that attempts at deregulation were sabotaged by vested interests, politicians and profiteers.
“Otedola himself was spotlighted during the forensic panel’s work and the House of Reps ad-hoc committee on subsidy payments chaired by Farouk Lawan,” Sani recalled.
The former aide referenced the Otedola-Lawan scandal, in which the businessman admitted giving marked money to the lawmaker, later claiming it was a sting operation.
“Rather than feigning moral superiority, Otedola should come clean. His comments, while critical of corruption, appear more like image-laundering than truth-telling. Nigerians deserve honesty, full disclosure and historical accuracy,” Sani added.
Sani urged Otedola to support a full independent inquiry into the subsidy regime across all administrations. Including the periods he profited from, instead of offering “curated narratives.”
“Until then, his accusations amount to nothing more than a pot calling the kettle black,” the former aide said