HEADLINE
Fuel subsidy: Peter Obi says “ forceful removal” of subsidy, not a good strategy
Article summary
- Obi says he has consistently maintained that subsidy should be removed because he sees it as organized crime.
- He added that he wouldn’t want to go through the pain of a forceful removal, citing welfare measures to ease the removal under President Jonathan’s era.
- He warned that the problem in Nigeria is that the often government tells the masses to suffer and sacrifice, for a better future; but in the future things get worse.
The Presidential candidate for the Labour Party, Peter Obi disclosed that forceful removal of the fuel subsidy by the FG is not an advisable way to remove subsidy due to the pains it has caused the Nigerian masses.
He urged a gradual process that focuses on tackling the waste and corruption in the removal processes.
Obi disclosed this in a tweet thread on Tuesday evening after he attended the ongoing Presidential petition case at the Court of Appeal.
Why fuel subsidy is an organised Crime
He stated that judicial correspondents ambushed him at the entrance of the court and demanded he talks to them about subsidy, Mr. Obi stressed that the old subsidy regime was an: organised crime” and needed to go adding:
- “When I told them I don’t speak on the matter before the court, they insisted that I should comment on the subsidy removal, which the government representatives were touting that I am in support of.
- “Reacting, I told them that I’ve actually been in support of the removal of subsidies right from the President Goodluck Jonathan era when I was a member of the Economic Management team.
- “If you have followed me very well right from the time I was a member of Jonathan’s economic management team, I consistently maintained that subsidy should be removed because I see it as organized crime.
- “People were just stealing the resources of the country and I showed it empirically in my statistical analysis that we were not consuming the amount of fuel they claimed we consumed.”
Gradual removal
Using the analogy of a gradual removal, he gave the example of “tooth pain” removal, adding that if you approach a dentist to remove a painful tooth, he will apply a local anesthetic to numb the area around the tooth so you do not feel pain.
- “ It’s not the same thing as pulling the tooth forcefully,
- “The pain you feel will be different. For me, I will go with the approach of the dentist, while supporting the removal of the tooth because I wouldn’t want to go through the pain of a forceful removal.
- “Recall that even when Jonathan’s government wanted to remove it they came up with various relieving policies like Sure-P and others.”
He added that in his manifesto he clearly outlines how he planned to remove subsidies, adding:
- “I will govern with the people and show them statistically and empirically what we are going to save, and what we are going to do using the savings to better the suffering masses
- “The problem in Nigeria is that often government tells the masses to suffer and sacrifice, for a better future; but in the future things get worse.”
Backstory
The Nigeria Labour Unions (NLC & TUC) agreed to call off their planned strikes scheduled for Wednesday, June 7th, 2023.
The union agreed to call off the strike after a closed-door meeting with government officials in Aso Rock late on Monday evening (5th of June 2023).
.The outcome of the meeting was announced by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the incoming Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to the State House correspondents and confirmed by the NLC President, Joe Ajaero, after an almost 6-hour meeting between representatives of the Federal Government and organized labour at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Gbajabiamila, while reading the communiqué which was signed by the representatives of the Federal Government and the leadership of the labour unions, stated that an agreement was struck between the NLC, TUC, and the team set up by President Bola Tinubu to discuss the issues arising from the subsidy removal.
