With Asiwaju’s subsidy’s gone gaffe, today petrol price soared to N600 per litre in my village — three times higher than the prior price. And it’s getting more hellacious to get even at that high price. Worse, without the subsidy, the price can only go higher.
This sudden sharp increase is very dangerous. The over 130 million poverty-stricken Nigerians can’t bear the consequences of the increase. Recently, we have seen what happened with similar increases in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Azerbaijan: Breakdown of law and order. Death and suffering. Economic misery. Crises. All this could happen here. So, In Asiwaju’s early days, it should be safety first.
The oil cartel and neoliberals talk badly about the subsidy. They’re wrong. What subsidy means to me and many ordinary Nigerians is affordable price for the petrol we need to fuel our cars, kekes, bikes and vehicles. It means filling our generators, with relative ease, when we need electricity at times the power companies fail to supply power.
Berbers, tailors, welders, vulcanizers, irrigation farmers, small business owners, grain-grinding women at home and much more use petrol in many ways. Now these hard-working Nigerians will be forced to buy petrol at a price 3 times higher! It’s insane. Inarguably, the costs will be passed on to the consumers and end users. Tinubu should know better what that means.
Petroleum subsidy is a good thing. All Nigerians agree on that. The only people who hate subsidies are IMF, World Bank and their local lackeys. They’re the enemies of Nigerians. They want us to buy petrol at international market prices. What if the international market prices go gaga? Oil is our God-given resource, please! I don’t think Tinubu should be seen in this evil company.
Of course, there are problems associated with this subsidy thing. All Nigerians agree on that too. But the main problems are corruption, inefficiency and incompetence. Dealing with corruption and incompetence is the first step to take. Removing the subsidy is never the solution.
Petrol and other petroleum products are very critical to our lives such that we can’t live without. At least for now, the petroleum industry is very vital to the Nigerian economy. Deregulation and privatisation of the industry will be against Article 7 of the APC Constitution – the platform on which Tinubu ran and won his election.
To be fair to Tinubu, like Atiku and Obi, he did not hide his personal position on the subsidy issue. Yet, when his position is inconsistent with the fundamentals of his platform, the Constitution of the APC and more importantly, the wishes of the overwhelming majority of Nigerians, then there’s no cause for debate. Public policy in a democracy must reflect the wishes of the people. No one wants to pay more for petrol. Especially in this difficult time. Spending Nigeria’s money on Nigerians is not a cost too much to bear.
What Tinubu should do is to (a) retain the subsidy until at least Dangote Refinery and NNPC’s refineries start refining (b) appoint incorruptible, competent and capable hands to man the petroleum industry and (c) effectively fight corruption in the Industry. And everything will be hunky-dory.
Saad, a lawyer is the Acting Chairman of APC Publicity Committee, Bauchi State and former Director-General of BASEPA.
