Representatives of the Federal Government of Nigeria are expected to meet with the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) today by 2pm over the planned removal of fuel subsidy.
“Government seems to have shown interest in discussion. As at last night, they reached out and we have fixed 2pm today (Wednesday) to commence discussion,” NLC National President, Joe Ajaero.
“There, all other issues will discussed because you can’t just say there no subsidy and then you are not producing and leave us to the vagaries of the market, to people who want to sell the product they bought for N10 for N100 to maximise profit. If there is no more garri, we must find out what to eat.”
He asserted that, notwithstanding President Bola Tinubu’s good intentions, alternatives must be offered. This is Labour’s attitude.
He claimed that the President ought to have inquired about the effects of the reduction of fuel subsidies on Nigerians on the streets.
The head of the NLC mentioned several solutions, among them the repair of the four refineries located in the country and the provision of alternate transportation for Nigerian workers.
“The pronouncement by Mr President is as good as law and if in the process we make a law that is not practicable, the same people that made the law can look at it,” Ajaero said while calling for a review of the President’s pronouncement.
“Does it bring pleasure to us to say subsidy is gone and people start suffering? Is it not part of leadership for us to look at how the suffering of the people can be reduced?” he asked.
The liberalisation of the oil industry and the elimination of subsidies, according to the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), are the only ways to make Nigeria great.
“Removing subsidy is the only answer to make Nigeria great,” IPMAN National Public Relations Officer, Yakubu Suleiman said on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Wednesday.
On Monday during his inaugural speech at the Eagle Square in Abuja, Tinubu said the era of subsidy payment on fuel has ended, adding that the 2023 Budget made no provision for fuel subsidy and more so, subsidy payment is no longer justifiable.
“The fuel subsidy is gone,” Tinubu said, noting that his government would instead channel funds into infrastructure and other areas to strengthen the economy.
Since then, Tinubu’s call for the elimination of gasoline subsidies has received support from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), however, argued that the President cannot unilaterally decide to end subsidies, arguing that there was a good reason why Muhammadu Buhari’s previous administration referred the “sensitive issue” to the incoming administration.
Since the president’s announcement, fuel lines have reemerged all over the nation as Nigerians scramble for the premium product, which is now marketed from N300/litre and above.