N2trn subsidy fraud bled Nigeria under Jonathan, depot owners cashed out, says Otedola 

Femi Otedola, billionaire businessman, has accused depot licence holders of siphoning more than N2 trillion through fraudulent petrol subsidy claims during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

In a statement on Monday, Otedola threw his weight behind the Dangote Petroleum Refinery (DPR) in its clash with the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), which had accused the refinery of “market-disruptive” fuel price cuts.

Dangote fired back that DAPPMAN had demanded an annual subsidy of N1.5 trillion to match its gantry prices, a claim Otedola said confirmed long-standing abuses in the subsidy regime.

“I personally warned President Goodluck Jonathan that he was being misled. The system was designed to benefit depot owners, and DAPPMAN members became the primary beneficiaries,” Otedola revealed.

“Over N2 trillion was siphoned through questionable claims tied to depot licences. The policy rewarded corruption and rent-seeking, not innovation or transparency.”

He further debunked the claim that depots generate major jobs, stressing that most employ only a handful of staff, while a single filling station sustains dozens of livelihoods.

Warning depot operators that their model is now obsolete in a Nigeria that refines locally, Otedola likened their predicament to the collapse of cement importers after local production took off.

“With local refining, depots built for an import economy no longer serve us. If DAPPMAN refuses to adapt, many members will slide into irrelevance or bankruptcy,” he cautioned.

Otedola urged depot owners to sell, restructure, or move into new value chains, challenging them to pool resources and buy the Port Harcourt refinery if they truly believed in competition.

“Instead of fighting progress, they should evolve. The choice is simple: innovate or die,” he declared.