Isa Yuguda, the former governor of Bauchi State, has made shocking revelations about a petrol subsidy scam involving officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), oil marketers, and other influential individuals in Nigeria. In an interview on Channels Television, Yuguda exposed the fraudulent activities surrounding the fuel subsidy.
Yuguda disclosed that the fuel subsidy had been primarily a scam orchestrated by the NNPC in collaboration with marketers and other stakeholders in the oil sector until its removal. He shared his firsthand experience as the chairman of a subcommittee during the economic meltdown period from 2008 to 2009, where he chaired the committee on subsidy. It was during this time that the committee unearthed the details of the subsidy scam.
"I am sad to let Nigerians know what I saw; we came across situations where subsidy was claimed on pipelines that never existed," Yuguda revealed, shedding light on the extent of the deception.
According to the former governor, both the NNPC and oil marketers would claim to have pumped a certain quantity of finished products or crude. However, he exposed their modus operandi, stating, "Those that claim to pump the products and those that are in the subsidy scam, they just fill papers, invoices, and they claim subsidy on it."
When specifically asked if it was indeed the NNPC that was involved in these fraudulent claims, Yuguda emphatically confirmed it, leaving no room for doubt. "Who else is doing it?" he rhetorically questioned, emphasizing the complicity of the state-owned oil firm.
Yuguda further asserted that the removal of the subsidy had long been a topic of discussion and was overdue. However, previous governments lacked the political will to implement the removal despite its necessity.
The revelations made by Isa Yuguda shed light on the deep-rooted corruption within the Nigerian oil sector, particularly in relation to petrol subsidy. Nigerians are left astounded by the extent of the scam and are hopeful that these revelations will lead to necessary reforms and greater transparency in the country's oil industry.
