NANS OFFICIAL STATEMENT ON THE PROPOSED REMOVAL OF FUEL SUBSIDY BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.

The National Association of Nigerian Students NANS, wish to formally respond, to the proposed removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria, as hinted few days ago, by the Honorable Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, where she expressed Federal Government intention to remove fuel subsidies by 2022 and give the “poorest 40 millions  people, a transportation grant of N5,000 each.

As the representative of Nigerian mass and  Nigerian Students  in particular both at home and in diaspora, we wish to state categorically,  that the proposed removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government is a time bomb which might explode anytime

Coming at a time, that the country in on a dangerous bend, with rising inflation,  low minimum wage and income for the average Nigerian, we consider the proposal as untimely, anti-people and as such, reject it in totality.

It should be noted, that even if the Federal government has any genuine reason to remove subsidy, a move that will automatically increase the pump price of petrol, the timing is wrong and we seriously suggest, that such proposal be immediately suspended by the federal government.

Another worrisome aspect, of the planned subsidy removal is the government plan to pay monthly amount of five thousand naira each, to forty million poorest Nigerians, to alleviate their transportation need. By implications, the plan to pay forty million Nigerians over two trillion Naira annually, is another window of corruption and excessive spending, rather than being a way of cutting cost paid on subsidy, which currently stands at less than two trillion Naira annually. It is also imperative to us to ask, the parameters for determining those Nigerians who are qualified to be among the forty million beneficiaries, under a system, without a  reliable database to know the number of  citizens nor competent classification of the truly vulnerable group of Nigerians.

We reject the so called Allowance for the “forty million Nigerians” as it is merely an attempt to add a new dimension of economic woe upon Nigerians through the removal of the subsidy.

We wish to state further, that before federal government can take any decision on the removal of the subsidy, it must first demonstrate goodwill, by ensuring that the NNPC makes the four refineries work at full capacity so as to determine the exact cost of refining the products in the country and why we have to continue importing refined petroleum products into the country.

Nigeria cannot continue to use the cost of importation of petrol as the benchmark for determining the appropriate price of the products, especially the PMS since refining in our country would not involve the same costs as importation of refined products.

We call on President Muhammadu Buhari, to consider the  need to review the proposed removal of fuel subsidy and make efforts to look at the matter from the viewpoint of the Nigerian masses. At present, the price of Cooking gas is at a all time high, making it unaffordable for the average Nigerian to purchase. This also deserves the attention and prompt intervention of the federal government, and we believe the time to address this is now.

We wish to restate our opposition, to any form of policy, that can impose hardship on the teeming masses of Nigerians and Nigerian students at this point in time, we demand that government should  urgently address our local production capacity, as promised over the years before ever considering fuel subsidy removal. We shall be willing to work with government and every stakeholders, towards finding a way out of our national challenges, in such manners that does not violate the right to life of our members and Nigerian people.

Aluta Continua, Victoria Ascerta.

Signed:

Comrade Asefon Sunday

Revolutionary President, NANS.