Billionaire businessman Femi Otedola has alleged that more than N2 trillion was siphoned through questionable petrol subsidy claims during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, with depot licences serving as the major channel of abuse.

In a statement, Otedola threw his weight behind the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in its ongoing dispute with the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria.

The association h’d on September 16 accused the refinery of engaging in market disruptive practices, claiming that its recent price cuts were aimed at weakening competition rather than serving national interest.

Responding, the refinery said the association allegedly demanded an annual subsidy of N1.5 trillion to enable members match its gantry prices at their depots.

Otedola maintained that the petrol subsidy system was deliberately structured to favour depot owners who became the primary beneficiaries of the scheme.

“On subsidy, I personally warned President Goodluck Jonathan that he was being misled. The system was built to benefit depot owners, and members of the association became the primary beneficiaries.

“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,” he said.

He dismissed the “myth” that depots create jobs, stressing that a typical depot employs not more than five people, including the gatekeeper.

This, he noted, is compared to filling stations that provide jobs for dozens of Nigerians ranging from attendants to cashiers, security guards and cleaners.

Otedola advised members of the association to stop clinging to what he called obsolete facilities that no longer serve the country’s current economic reality.

He cited the cement industry as an example, where bulk carriers became redundant after Nigeria began producing cement locally.

“The same outcome awaits fuel depots. If the members do not adapt, they risk becoming irrelevant and possibly bankrupt. Instead of resisting progress, they should consider selling, restructuring, or investing in new value chains,” Otedola said.

He challenged them to demonstrate their belief in competition by pooling resources to acquire the Port Harcourt refinery and attempt to succeed where the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited had failed. (Daily Trust)