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‘No matter how Nigerians protest, I will remove fuel subsidy if elected’ —Tinubu

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The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has vowed to do away with fuel subsidy if he is elected president in 2023 not minding how much Nigerians kick against it.

Tinubu who made the pledge at a business luncheon tagged: “Business Forward” which held in Lagos on Thursday, where he hosted top business executives and captains of industry, said he would take such tough and bold decisions necessary to turn the nation’s economy around.

The business luncheon had in attendance the likes of Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Oando Plc Group Chief Executive Officer, Wale Tinubu, former House of Representatives Speaker Dimeji Bankole, former Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, one-time Lagos State Finance Commissioner, Wale Edun, Yemi Kadozo, the Economic Planning and Information and Strategy Commissioner, Dele Alake.

The former Lagos State Governor further declared that it would be detrimental for Nigeria to continue to subsidise fuel consumption for neighbouring countries.

“The era when petrol subsidy was fashionable is gone. If I am elected President, I will remove fuel subsidy no matter how much Nigerians protest against it.

“The Petroleum Act is there for us to take a second look at to meet our obligations and no matter how much or long the protest, we will remove petrol subsidy.

“We will take tough decisions, but it will be done, and that is the truth. It must be removed. We can invest the money wisely, for instance in health, as some of you have said.

“No matter how long you protest, we will remove subsidy. We can do it. We are educated enough. How can we subsidise fuel consumption of Cameroon, Niger, Benin Republic and some others?” He said.

Fuel subsidy has been a controversial decision, and President Buhari’s government had attempted to remove it this year, however, he postponed the removal to the second quarter of 2023.

READ ALSO:APC campaign berates ‘confused’ Atiku’s team for endless attack on Tinubu

This postponement leaves the decision to remove the subsidy in the hands of either Tinubu, Peter Obi or Atiku Abubakar, as the three are vying for the presidential seat.

Fuel subsidy consuming FG’s capital

The Federal Government has been losing significant revenue to fuel subsidy, preventing the government from directing the funds into other critical sectors or capital projects.

As a result of fuel subsidy, Nigeria’s budget deficit has grown significantly, with FG raising N3.3 trillion from the domestic market to finance 2022 budget.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, had stated in November that FG is borrowing to maintain the fuel subsidy.

According to the Debt Management Office (DMO) Director-General, Patience Oniha, subsidyon fuel increased debt stock by N1 trillion in 2022.

Note that between January and August 2022, the government spent N2.565 trillion. However, in June, the World Bank projected that fuel subsidy would gulp N5 trillion in 2022. This is more than Nigeria’s N4 trillion subsidy budget.

Also, FG has earmarked N3.3 trillion for fuel subsidy between January and June 2023, according to the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework.

Ahmed had previously stated at the end of the second quarter of this year that subsidy is hurting Nigeria, and making it impossible for the country to invest in human capital development and meet debt service obligation.

As a result of the fuel subsidy, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has not remitted up to N20,000 to the federation account, according to the governor of Kaduna, Nasir El-Rufai.

By Isaac Dachen and Fakoyejo Ayodeji

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