Dr. Doyin Okupe, senior special assistant to the President (Public Affairs), yesterday, posted a statement on Facebook which said that the federal government will not remove oil subsidy “in the nearest future.”
This is in apparent move to douse the anger and sentiments generated by the comment credited to President Goodluck Jonathan two weeks ago that his government planned increase in the prices of petroleum products after due consultations with Nigerians.
The president’s statement was reiterated two days later by Labaran Maku, minister of Information, during a press briefing at the end of a Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.
Some of the immediate reactions to the comment came from the organized labour which has fixed April 10 for nationwide mass protests and organized civil disobedience similar to the January 1, 2012 strike that paralysed the nation. .
But Okupe in a statement said ,“Contrary to the speculation in the media and assumption by certain groups within the polity, we wish to state categorically that, the removal of oil subsidy is not on the table of the Transformation Agenda of the President.
He added that “The statement made by President Goodluck Jonathan at the recent Economic Summit held in Lagos was a frank, intellectual and well articulated contribution by the President to the discussion on the Nigerian Economy at the said Summit, and it was from a honest and sincere leadership perspective.
Okupe said it is an undeniable fact that every responsible leadership, genuine stakeholder and patriot must be worried when a Nation spends about N1 Trillion, an equivalent of about 20% of the National Budget, on subsidy paid out to a few Companies and enjoyed in the main by very few elites, while the common man benefits only minimally.
Okupe subsidy“However, it is an incontrovertible fact that sufficient allocation for fuel subsidy has already being made in the 2013 budget; therefore, there is no cause for alarm on removal of subsidy. The President and this administration are not insensitive to the plights of the Nigerian Masses and will continue to pursue and execute policies and programmes that are in the overall interest of majority of Nigerians and that will bring the greatest good to the greatest number of our teeming population.
Jonathan’s aide said “Finally, for the avoidance of doubt and at the risk of being repetitive, this administration is not considering the issue of removal of fuel subsidy in the nearest future and certainly will not embark on any such programme without extensive consultations and engagements across the various segments, interests and stakeholders in the Nigerian polity.”
