Okonjo-Iweala reveals how $2.4bn fuel subsidy fraud probe led to mother’s abduction

The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has revealed how an investigation into an alleged $2.4 billion fuel subsidy fraud triggered threats against her and the kidnapping of her mother.

According to The Punch, Okonjo-Iweala disclosed this during an interview with Francine Lacqua, explaining that suspicious subsidy claims prompted an audit while she served as Nigeria’s finance minister.

“So I went to the president and said, look, something is going on here. Could we audit the accounts? And he said, yes, go ahead. And we found about $2.4 billion worth of fraud. So we refused to pay,” she said.

She explained that the refusal triggered threats and her mother’s abduction in 2012.

“I was told that for her to be released, I should resign and leave the country,” she recalled.

Okonjo-Iweala described the five-day ordeal as devastating, revealing that her mother eventually escaped from captivity in a forest.

Her mother, now 96, remains emotionally affected by the incident.