December 14, (THEWILL) – The Federal Government has faulted reports by the World Bank that it is still paying subsidies on petrol, saying the era of petrol subsidy is “gone for good”.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said this on Thursday while speaking in an interview on Channels TV.
The Minister was reacting to the claims on Wednesday, by World Bank’s lead economist for Nigeria, Alex Sienaert, that current fuel prices in Nigeria were not cost-reflective and that the Federal Government might still be paying a subsidy on petrol.
President Bola Tinubu on May 29, 2023, in his inaugural speech, announced the removal of subsidy payment on petrol.
While Reports including THEWILL had insisted that the Federal Government is still paying subsidy on petrol, presenting a 45-page bi-annual Nigeria Development Update (NDU), for December 2023, titled: ‘Turning the Corner: From Reforms and Renewed Hope to Results’ launched at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, on Wednesday, Sienaert said Nigerians should be paying about N750 per litre as against the current price of N650 in parts of the country.
But speaking on Thursday, during an interview on Channels TV, Idris, insisted that the Tinubu’s led Federal Government was no longer paying any subsidy on petrol.
“Subsidy is gone, and the President told Nigerians from his first day in office that there won’t be a subsidy (on petrol).
“It is because the subsidy has gone, that we have so much money available for the government to do so many things. Of course, it’s never enough, but the fuel subsidy is gone and it’s gone for good.
“There are instances where the government needs to come in, to see that things don’t go so bad. That’s the responsibility of the government. Every rule will also have its self-adjusting mechanism, but I can assure Nigerians that the subsidy is gone.
“If you look at the monies accruing to the federation account and the kind of money the states are receiving, you would know that everybody desires that subsidy should go.
“What do we do with that subsidy, I think, is the next question. We need to scrutinise that so that Nigerians would have the benefit of the subsidy that has been taken away. The subsidy is gone”, the Minister insisted.
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