The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has asked the new administration to engage stakeholders on the appropriateness of subsidy removal and also provide palliatives to cushion the effects of the removal.
The National Chairman of IPAC, Engr Yabagi Sani stated this on Thursday while addressing journalists on the state of the nation.
He said a good number of Nigerians have argued that whereas the subsidy removal is necessary for the nation’s economic growth, the timing and manner of the adjustment is at variance with the expectations of the Nigerian masses in view of the current living condition of the people vis-à-vis the already tense socio-political environment.
Sani said for IPAC, the issue of subsidy removal though at the heart of the economic development of Nigeria and a necessary evil, and Mr. President must have been overwhelmed by the urgency of the need to address the dire economic situation of the country to have expressed his desire.
“However, on the issue of subsidy, IPAC advises the new administration to quickly engage with the stakeholders on the appropriateness of jettisoning the subsidy regime, in addition to putting in place targeted palliative measures to cushion the effect of the eventual removal.
“However, in our candid opinion, it would rather have been done at a more suitable time in view of the fact of the PIA 2022 and appropriation Act 2023, the extant laws, as well as Mr. President’s pronouncement in his inaugural speech was clear that he will govern by the rule of law.
“There is no doubt that Economics believes in a market economy, in which production and prices are determined by unrestricted competition between privately owned businesses.
“However, this scenario exposes the local economy to the dictates of global oil price shocks, hence, subsidy regime over the years became a strategy to cushion the effect on the citizens”, he said.
Sani tasked the new administration to as a matter of urgency set up a forensic enquiry on the subsidy regime to unravel the secrecy and obvious perception of large-scale corruption in the sector.
“The NNPC, CBN, Marketers and the players in the value chain of the subsidy era should be properly audited. Government should also address the issue of oil theft, and metering of the sector infrastructure while pursuing fiscal policy measures to progressively manage the economic interventions. Going forward, the NNPC and all relevant agencies should be made to operate transparently and accountable in its dealings.
“In addition, the federal government as a matter of priority should strengthen the law enforcement agencies, particularly the anti-graft agencies to effectively enforce their mandates. These interventions will reinforce the confidence of Nigerians that subsidy removal will not be more fuel for corruption”, he added.
