Nigerian billionaire businessman Femi Otedola has confirmed that the charges are false, misleading, and defamatory as he rejects recent reports connecting him to the fuel subsidy controversy.
Former media assistant to ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo Umar Sani made the accusations, saying Otedola was complicit in the subsidy scheme.
Otedola said in his response that Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited, his establishment, only traded in diesel, a deregulated commodity outside the subsidy program. He said that the only commodity qualified for subsidy claims, Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), was never traded by the business. He therefore maintained there was no justification connecting Zenon to the Petroleum Subsidy Fund.
Otedola has moved the issue beyond public rejection by bringing a libel suit against Sani for N1 billion, The News Chronicle gathered. He argues that he has always been open and in the best interest of the Nigerian economy.
Notably, Otedola reminded the public that during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, he was the whistleblower who initially revealed the enormous corruption in the subsidy scheme. He claims that this revelation sparked law investigations, which then found evidence of economic saboteurs tampering with the system.
Otedola also discussed previous scandals involving Hon. Farouk Lawan, later convicted of bribery. He said his participation in a sting operation with security companies was intended to expose extortion attempts rather than evidence of personal wrongdoing.
Furthermore, rejecting claims about his interactions with the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), he pointed out that he had meticulously adhered to a court-ordered settlement to pay his debts after the 2008 worldwide financial crisis.
Otedola called for transparency and asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to publish the whole Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede report on subsidy fraud, therefore exposing the actual perpetrators. He vowed to fight for his name by legal means and stressed that propaganda should not tarnish reputations.
As the case is now in process, Otedola’s position confirms his lifelong belief that he has nothing to conceal and will not let history be manipulated by false narratives.
