President Muhammadu Buhari could not remove fuel subsidy because doing so have serious social consequences according to the Special Adviser to President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina.
Adesina said each time there is an effort to fight the fraud in the subsidy regime, the Federal Government have to contend with opposition from the labour unions and the people.
Adesina spoke on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday.
Recall that the previous administration of President Goodluck Jonathan had in 2012 faced stiff opposition from organized labour for removing the subsidy.
The decision was greeted with mass protests in several states of the Federation.
According to Adesina, “The government needed to weigh its options because of the social consequences in it.”
During his campaign for the 2015 presidential election, Buhari questioned the rationale for retaining fuel subsidies, calling them a fraud.
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However, approximately eight years later, the Buhari administration recently announced that subsidy removal will take effect in June 2023, after he has completed his two terms in office.
Adesina attributed his principal’s inability to remove the subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit, also known as gasoline, to economic and social factors.
“In the beginning, his (Buhari’s) position was: what was subsidy really? But over the years it became evident that the country was bleeding, the economy was bleeding, there was a lot of hemorrhage which needed to be stopped and the time came and that time is now,” Adesina said.
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The presidential aide also stated that the gasoline subsidy had been extended for a longer period of time than was necessary. He went on to say that almost every Nigerian has now realized that it must be stopped.