Shutting down petrol stations on the announcement of the removal of petroleum subsidy is the usual blackmail by the subsidy cartel, a former federal lawmaker, Senator Shehu Sani has said.
The senator made this known in a tweet on Monday while reacting to developments stemming from the president’s announcement yesterday.
According to him, the government had spent billions of naira on fuel subsidy which experts say is not sustainable.
He said, ”It’s time to neutralise the subsidy parasites.”
The issue of fuel subsidy has been a matter of national discussion for many years, with many questioning its impact on citizens.
The immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari had announced the removal of the fuel subsidy in June, but it was postponed during the Federal Executive Council meeting on April 27.
“Subsidy is gone!” Tinubu exclaimed during his inaugural address at Eagle Square, Abuja, shortly after he was sworn in as the 16th President of Nigeria.
The president said there was no provision for subsidy in the national budget as of June 2023 and, therefore, it stands removed.
However, reacting on Monday, IPMAN said it was opposed to the new president’s subsidy removal plan
The National Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, said the new government should dialogue with marketers before taking the decision to remove subsidy.
“We are not in support of the removal of fuel subsidy at this time. We have said it repeatedly that our refineries should be fixed before taking such decision that will cause galloping inflation and inflict more hardship on the masses.
“The government of President Tinubu should not adopt what is in the transition document handed over to it by the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari. Someone (Buhari) who for eight years did not remove subsidy is advising a new government to remove it.
“That is not fair and should not be adopted. Rather the new government should sit and discuss with marketers and other stakeholders on how to manage the fuel subsidy regime. We now have the Dangote Refinery, but all our refineries are still not working, so we don’t think removing subsidy is the right thing to do now,” Ukadike stated.
He said IPMAN was ready to work with the new government and would proffer measures to address the fuel subsidy regime, instead of effecting an outright halt in subsidy.
When contacted to state their position on the issue, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria stated that it would not comment on the development now, as it was currently studying the new administration.
“We wouldn’t want to comment on the fuel subsidy removal matter now because we are still studying the situation and the new government of President Tinubu,” the General Secretary, PENGASSAN, Lumumba Okugbawa, stated.
While IPMAN insisted that subsidy should not be removed without the repairs of Nigeria’s refineries, the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria maintained its position that fuel subsidy should stop.
The Executive Secretary, MOMAN, Clement Isong, said Nigeria was burning its earnings by paying trillions as subsidy on petrol.
“Currently, we are told that this year that we are to spend about N6tn on subsidy. I am sure that in our hearts we all know that if we invested that N6tn in sustainable programmes, it will grow the economy. It is a better way to go than to burn it in fuel subsidy. We all know this,” he stated.
Barely a few hours after Tinubu’s announcement on subsidy, fuel queues resurfaced in Abuja, Lagos and some states.
Motorists besieged filling stations in Abuja, Nasarawa and Niger states on Monday afternoon following the news.
The announcement triggered a rush for petrol at fillings stations in Abuja and neighbouring states by motorists, as they struggled to get their tanks filled, over fear that once subsidy ends, the cost of PMS could rise above N500/litre.
Meanwhile, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), on Tuesday urged Abuja residents to desist from panic buying of fuel as there was enough products on ground.
IPMAN’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Alhaji Suleiman Yakubu said this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
Yakubu was reacting to the reappearance of queues at some fueling stations in the Federal Capital Territory.
He described the panic purchase and long queues as unnecessary.
“I advise Nigerians to stop panic buying, as we have enough Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly known as petrol on ground.
“We want to assure the buyers that government and marketers are doing everything possible to ensure that the products are available and avoid any impulse buying,” he said.
However, some retail outlets around Maitama, Wuse, Gwarimpa, Wuye and Kubwa Expressways were selling fuel while some were not.
