Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has revealed that President Muhammadu Buhari blocked plans to remove fuel subsidy in Nigeria.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the Governor made this revelation during a policy conversation and book presentation organised by Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Agora Policy in Abuja.
El-Rufai disclosed that between September and November 2021, the National Economic Council had given them an assignment to work out a plan on how much would be raised if the fuel subsidy was withdrawn.
The outgoing governor disclosed that they developed a framework that will enable the savings from halting the subsidy to be used for education, health, infrastructure, and other sectors.
“We came out with a report on what to do with the resources, which will be transparently explained to Nigerians. Components of it include investment in security, social protection, etc. The report is there,” he said.
According to El-Rufai, Buhari had agreed that fuel subsidy spending by the government made no sense but refused to halt it.
He said the governors saw danger ahead in 2021 with the retention of fuel subsidy and approached Buhari, asking if it made sense to spend N200 billion on all federal roads in Nigeria in one year and six times that on cheap petrol.
El-Rufai continued: “He (President) said it doesn’t make sense. So why are we doing it? This is something we’ve been studying for many years, we have a framework and the economic council agreed, all the 36 governors of Nigeria agreed that it should be withdrawn and we had a clear plan on where the money would go.
“Some of it will go to the Federal Government, some to states, Local Governments, and to interventions. We all agreed. The President said, no! That’s it.”
In his submission, former Central Bank Governor Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi described the retention of fuel subsidy as “stupid” and capable of bankrupting the country.
Sanusi said that for every $1 billion Nigeria spends on fuel subsidy, $1 billion is taken from education, healthcare, power, and infrastructure. He urged the incoming government to stop the subsidy regime, saying it would lead to an unsustainable future for the country.
The country spends more than $850 million each month on fuel subsidies, according to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. However, the decision to halt the costly venture by the past government has sparked mass protests and unrest across the country.
It remains unclear if the new administration, which will be led by Bola Ahmed Tinubu will discontinue the subsidy program.
