NewStats: 3,264,448 , 8,183,743 topics. Date: Wednesday, 11 June 2025 at 06:55 AM 6n5536

Ex-EFCC boss unveils book on Nigeria’s fuel subsidy fraud

A former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, has released a groundbreaking new book titled, “The Shadow of Loot & Losses: Uncovering Nigeria’s Petroleum Subsidy Fraud.”

The exposé provides the most authoritative of Nigeria’s multi-trillion-naira fuel subsidy scandal, unravelling the inner workings of one of the country’s most pervasive financial crimes.

According to a statement signed by Vic Akinrogunde, drawing from his firsthand experience as a key investigator on the EFCC’s special team that probed the 2012 subsidy fraud, Bawa revealed the staggering scale, complexity, and audacity of the schemes used to siphon public funds under the guise of fuel subsidy payments.

His insider narrative chronicles how billions of naira were recovered and several culprits brought to justice, while also shedding light on how entrenched corruption allowed the fraud to flourish for years.

In the book, published by CableBooks, an imprint of Cable Media & Publishing Ltd, Bawa detailed multiple fraudulent strategies including Ghost importing and over-invoicing; companies submitting claims for fuel that was never imported or inflated shipment volumes to receive excessive subsidy payouts; manipulation of bills of lading; by altering shipping documents, fraudsters exploited international price fluctuations to claim higher subsidies; round-tripping and double claims; single shipments were often used to obtain multiple subsidy payments; diversion and smuggling; and subsidised fuel was frequently diverted to black markets or smuggled out of Nigeria for profit.

These practices, Bawa explained, were enabled by forged documents, weak regulatory oversight, and systemic collusion between corrupt government officials and private sector actors.

“The Shadow of Loot & Losses is not just a chronicle of fraud. It is a call to action — a demand for transparency, ability, and reform in Nigeria’s public finance management, especially in the oil sector,” Bawa said.

Having served as EFCC chairman from 2021 to 2023, Bawa brings rare credibility and insight into the institutional challenges and political dynamics that have shaped the anti-corruption fight in Nigeria.

His book is both a revelation and a reckoning — offering evidence-based analysis and personal reflections on one of the most controversial chapters in Nigeria’s recent history.

The book is essential reading for policymakers, civil society advocates, journalists, and citizens interested in understanding how systemic fraud undermines development and how it can be challenged.

https://guardian.ng/news/ex-efcc-boss-unveils-book-on-nigerias-fuel-subsidy-fraud/#google_vignette

You urself had skeleton in cupboards while you led pH as sector commander in EFCC.

Am sure this book is a must read

Rubbish!

Everyone writing books they won't read. Next thing is to schedule a book launch, invite his friends, politicians, victims and potential victims.

It is crucial to recognize that fraud thrives not just because criminals are bold, but because systems are complicit. What Bawa recounts-ghost imports, forged documentation, double claims-is not simply the work of "fraudsters" but the legacy of a deep-state collusion economy that the EFCC itself has been accused of shielding at times.

While we commend the former chairman for documenting his perspective, many will ask: Why now? Why not while in office? A revelation after tenure runs the risk of becoming a post-facto alibi, rather than a proactive instrument of justice.

We need more than chronicles of what went wrong - we need radical restructuring of how oil subsidies are tracked, approved, and paid. This includes blockchain-based verification of fuel imports, transparent port logistics, and real-time public audit trails.

Nigeria doesn't need another book on fraud. We need functional justice architecture. Until whistleblowers are protected, digital trails are public, and corruption is politically suicidal - not lucrative - the "shadow" will persist.

When he was there, what did he do?

They only speak after they leave office.

its book season guyssss.

first IBB,
now Bawa.

People in pains.... Tinubu where's our fuel subsidy money? Why are you still borrowing?

Pot calling kettle black

BlueStripper:


Rubbish!

Everyone writing books they won't read. Next thing is to schedule a book launch invite his, friends, politicians, victims and potential victims.

Victims 😂😂😂🤣

Trying to cash out through book launching. Book that may contain trash. Book that people may not read.

If EFCC were up and doing, there won't be much corruption in Nigeria.

Nice expose from once big boy of Buhari era

Fuel subsidy is the scapegoat.

Did fuel subsidy operate itself by itself that made it to defraud Nigeria?

... Wetin we no go hear.. A man who was given house arrest because of corruption, him and Malami were both sharing all the assets and money recovered from corrupt politicians and civil servants... now writing a book... Nigeria don finish...

Fiscus105:
You urself had skeleton in cupboards while you led pH as sector commander in EFCC.

Tell us more

Fiscus105:
You urself had skeleton in cupboards while you led pH as sector commander in EFCC.

Leave am
Even as Chairman nko

Oga go and rest and enjoy your loot. You are not also clean. Pot calling kettle black. Where were you when emefiwere was building duplexes, how about Sirika, Malami, that Minister woman in humanitarian affairs nko e.t.c
The kind of monumental fraud and corruption that went on under Buhari(A K. A) mai Gaskiya is mind buggling. He supervised the most corrupt istration in the history of Nigeria.

dem retire this man at a young age.
blame buhari nepotism

Noted.

These practices, Bawa explained, were enabled by forged documents, weak regulatory oversight, and systemic collusion between corrupt government officials and private sector actors.

Is it fuel subsidy that did these things or human beings?

How many of these "corrupt government officials and private sector actors" did he arrest and prosecute?

na soo oo

Trustme2:
Oga go and rest and enjoy your loot. You are not also clean. Pot calling kettle black. Where were you when emefiwere was building duplexes, how about Sirika, Malami e.t.c

When you were there what did you do to correct the anomalies. All I see is a subtle advert that create curiosity in people mind to buy his book. Everything there is what we already known

iwaeda:
They only speak after they leave office.

U Sabi them wella.. Na old takers dem

Good old fraud
Subsidy fraud

At the end, however, profits must be made for any business to run well.

And people wanted the ruinous subsidy retained.

Now, with the benefit of hindsight, their leaders go on Arise to say subsidy should not have been removed until palliatives were in place.

Another of their favourite phoney line is, the President should have removed subsidy in stages.

In reality, we know neither of those options would have resulted in the total removal of subsidy as we thankfully have today.

Any President that announces removal in stages would only succeed in removing the first stage because ASUU, NLC and the rest of them would have made the next phase of removal impossible, and anticipation of subsequent phases would have sent goods and food prices as high as full removal did, except we would not have had full removal and prices of everything would still have gone up.

As for having palliative in place before removing subsidy? That's laughable. In this Nigeria? How much palliative can a govt put in place before people would say oya, you can now remove subsidy. And where was the money to even continue to pay the subsidy.

What the fraudulent subsidy cabal needed was a shock therapy that gave them no time to start sponsoring protests. That shock, that gave them no time to react, was exactly what the President delivered.

Nigeria's most decisive, boldest, and most reformist head of state/President since independence, 65 years ago. Full stop.

And yet not one company or director is in prison.

These are the reasons the president announced " subsidy is gone" at his inauguration. It was an audacious move by the government to revitalize the oil and gas sector. This initiative by president Tinubu has helped to foster transparency, efficiency, competition and availability of the product.

ezenwajunior:
When he was there, what did he do?

Ask him o.

Na when they leave office them go dey talk