A former adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari, Prof. Itse Sagay has said that the sudden removal of subsidy by President Bola Tinubu created untold hardship in Nigeria.
Appearing on a
Channels Television program on Friday, February 9, Sagay said Tinubu should
have waited for six months after his inauguration before removing the fuel
subsidy.
The Chairman
of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) said;
“Petrol is
critical to our lives. The cost of living is going up, and basic living is now
expensive. I think we might have gone on for another six months and as internal
production was coming up, then the subsidy can be removed.
“The immediacy
and the sudden manner of the decision to remove petrol subsidy has created an
immediate level of hardship which is almost becoming unbearable.”
“I am not in
full agreement with the way and order some of the things are being done now. On
the issue of petrol, I would have been happier if the government had been
patient to allow internal production to commence before removing the subsidy.
“Now, Dangote
is now producing. And of course, the refinery in Port Harcourt is almost ready.
Perhaps, if we had waited a little longer, the transition will not have been
harsh. We are in it already but I think we are in competent hands and we will
get out of it.
“We’ve been on
this subsidy for decades and a few more months would not have killed us. You
can see the difference in lifestyle now.”
On deterioration of the value of the naira, Sagay said;
“I never
dreamt that there would be a time when the dollar would change for over N1,000
to a dollar. It has to stop, otherwise, it will destroy everything that the
government is trying to do.”
The Senior
Advocate of Nigeria however expressed confidence in the new government and its
ability to provide quality leadership for the Nigerian people.
He said;
“They are
people who know what they are doing. I have faith in them and I believe that as
time goes on, the pressure on Nigerians will ease, hardship will decrease and
we will be in a much better position that we are in now.”
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