Nigerian businessman, Femi Otedola, has filed a N1 billion defamation lawsuit against Umar Sani, a former spokesperson to ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo, over allegedly damaging statements made against his person.
This development follows allegations by Sani, who accused Otedola of benefiting from the petroleum subsidy scheme, claiming that his company, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd., offered marked currency to former lawmaker Farouk Lawan under the pretext of a sting operation.
It was gathered that Otedola and Sani have been at odds since the billionaire intervened in the ongoing fuel supply dispute between the Dangote Refinery and the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), advising members of the association to embrace change.
In his reaction, Otedola described the claims as deliberate falsehoods and baseless allegations, noting that he had instructed his legal team to file a N1 billion libel suit against Umar Sani.
He emphasized that reputations should not be trivialized or dragged into cheap propaganda, stressing that the lawsuit is also intended to serve as a deterrent to others who may seek to engage in similar acts of mischief in the future.
“I will go to every extent to ensure this is achieved. To Mr. Sani and others who peddle these half-baked stories: go and read my book Making It Big, study the facts, and stop disgracing yourselves with ignorance,” Otedola said.
The Nigerian entrepreneur maintained that he has nothing to conceal and has always acted in the spirit of truth and accountability.
He added that those who truly benefited from the subsidy fraud are well aware of themselves, stressing that he would not sit idly by and allow falsehoods to be recorded as history.
Responding to the controversy, Otedola clarified that his company, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited, operated solely as an importer and trader of diesel, commanding a market share of over 90 percent at the time.
He emphasized that Zenon never engaged in the trade of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and therefore could not have made any subsidy claims under the Petroleum Subsidy Fund (PSF) scheme.
Otedola further explained that diesel had been deregulated long before the introduction of the PSF and was not among the petroleum products eligible for subsidy claims.
According to him, PMS was the only product covered under the scheme, as part of the government’s efforts to make it widely available and affordable to Nigerians.
“It is shocking that someone like Umar Sani, who occupied a position of authority and responsibility, could display such ignorance of basic industry facts in public.
“I view this as either mischief—taking advantage of an uneducated public—or a blatant display of gross ineptitude.
“If diesel did not fall under the subsidy regime, how can Umar Sani accuse Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited of impropriety under that same scheme?” he queried.
Otedola also urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to make public the full report on subsidy fraud authored by Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, stressing that Nigerians deserve to know the truth.
He recalled that it is a matter of public record that the Presidency at the time directed the late EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde, to halt the investigation.
According to him, releasing the report would expose the real subsidy profiteers and put an end to ongoing speculations.
