I always support removal of fuel subsidy, not without palliative measures - Obi

Advertisements

The Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, said the fuel subsidy should not have been removed without a regime of bountiful palliatives to cushion the effects of the hardship on Nigerians.

Obi spoke on the sidelines of the ongoing hearing of petitions challenging the February 25 presidential election at the presidential election petition tribunal in Abuja.

He streesed that the Federal Government should have unveiled the palliatives that would lighten the hardships to be faced by ordinary people in the country.

He insisted that he has always supported removal of fuel subsidy but not with the measures that would life easy for Nigerians.

President Bola Tinubu had in his inaugural address on May 29 announced the end of the subsidy regime in the country.

He stressed that no allocation was made for the payment of fuel subsidy in the 2023 budget beyond July.

Shortly afterwards, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced the adjustment of pump price at its stations to N500 and above.

Obi said: “Throughout my campaigns, go and check my manifesto, I had maintained this about its removal.

“If you have a toothache and you go to a dentist, there is a difference between removing your tooth by applying anaesthesia, which will ameliorate your pains than by just pulling it out.

“The difference is that I believe it should be removed with conditions, and that conditions have to be applied.”

The ex-Anambra State governor said he would have also removed subsidy by adopting a transparent system that would carry the people along as president.

He added: “If I was involved, I had to show empirical and statistical on data how much we are going to save, where we are going to apply it and the gains for the people.

“I said throughout my campaign, that I am going to govern the people by being open, showing them empirical, verifiable facts on how the country can be better, that is what I would have done.

“There are things you need to do. I remember when ex-President Goodluck Jonathan was about to remove fuel subsidy that was when they came up with SURE-P as part of the conditions.

“The reason Nigerians are agitating is that when people say let’s go and suffer, let’s go and sacrifice, they don’t see the effects of the sacrifice, and we need to do this in an organised manner where people can see in a verifiable plan.

“Governance shouldn’t be supply driven, it should be demand-driven. You govern with the people, let the people know what you are doing and explain it to them in clear terms and they will believe you.”