Abdulrasheed Bawa, a former head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has alleged a sizable number of dishonest practices were used to smuggle public funds under the guise of fuel subsidy payments.
In his book, “The Shadow of Loot &, Losses: Uncovering Nigeria’s Petroleum Subsidy Fraud,” Bawa made this known, according to a statement released on Monday.
The book, according to the statement, exposes one of Nigeria’s largest fuel subsidy scandal, exposing how it operates.
Read more about President Tinubu’s declaration that “Fuel Subsidy Is Gone” in his inaugural speech.
Bawa reveals the complexity and audacity of the corrupt schemes used, drawing from his firsthand experience as a key investigator on the EFCC’s special team that investigated the 2012 subsidy fraud.
The former head of the anti-graft agency, according to the statement, documented how billions of naira were stolen as a result of claims for fuel that was never imported or shipped at inflated volumes despite receiving excessive subsidies.
The manipulation of bills of lading, where fraudsters allegedly abused international price fluctuations to claim higher subsidies, was another tactic adopted by the scandals’ perpetrators, as revealed in the book.
Round-tripping, double claims, diversion, and smuggling are other scharf practices that Bawa, who served as the EFCC chairman from 2021 to 2023, has exposed.
“Single shipments were frequently used to get multiple subsidy payments. Subsidized gasoline was frequently smuggled out of Nigeria for profit or routed to black markets.
According to Bawa, forged documents, stifling regulatory oversight, and systemic collusion between corrupt government officials and private sector actors helped advance these practices.
The Shadow of Loot and Losses is a call to action, a call for accountability, accountability, and reform in Nigeria’s public finance system, particularly in the oil sector, according to Bawa.
Removal of Subsidies
Nigerians protested nationwide in 2012 as a result of the planned removal of the fuel subsidy by the then-President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
In September 2012, the Federal Government said it paid a total of ₦259, 339, 041, 657.85 as subsidy claims between 2011 and 2012.
President Bola Tinubu announced the end of the fuel subsidy at his inauguration in May 2023.
He stated that his decision to eliminate the fuel subsidy was in the youth’s and their future’s interests during the planning committee’s meeting at the State House in Abuja in March 2025.
You are the subject of every choice I make. The future is at stake. We removed the fuel subsidy because we hoped to safeguard your future.
Source: Channels TV
Leave a Reply