Sanusi, Soludo, El-Rufai Back Petrol Subsidy Removal

Malam Nasir El-Rufai, the governor of Kaduna State, and Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, the governor of Anambra, have asked the federal government to terminate the gasoline subsidy programme that has harmed Nigeria's economy.

At a panel discussion on "How Nigeria Can Build a Post-Oil Economic Future" on Tuesday in Abuja, the governors made the request.

According to NAN, Agora Policy, a Nigerian think tank, and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace jointly convened the conference.

Additionally, the Financial Times picked "Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy" as one of the Best Books of 2022, and it was presented during the event.

Dr Zainab Usman wrote the book. She is a senior fellow and the director of the Africa Programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C.

El-Rufai stressed in his speech the necessity of eliminating gasoline subsidies and of finding a practical solution to the issues at hand rather than postponing action.

He remembered that in 2021, the National Economic Council (NEC) assigned a team under his leadership the task of developing a plan for what to do with the resources if the subsidy was eliminated, including how much needed to be raised.

The framework on investments in security, social protection, infrastructure on health and education, among other things, were included as parts of the suggestion.

“We worked with experts and World Bank and came out with a report on what to do with the resources which would be transperently explained to Nigerians.

“In 2021 the Federal Government ‘s budget for road was N200 billion and in 2021 we were projecting to spend N1.2 trillion on subsidy and we saw the danger and I called for its removal.

“We have a framework and the economic council agreed for it to be withdrawn because we had a clear plan on where the money should go which include federal, state and local government for interventions.

“Still it is on and currently we are looking at N6 trillion on subsidy but go and check the national budget on infrastructure on health and education, it is not up to that and does not make any sense, so we need to end the subsidy,” he advised

On his part, Soludo urged for transformational leadership and an agenda, noting that the incoming administration had the opportunity for a new beginning.

"It must begin with assembling the team and getting started right away with institutional reforms and a competitive system."

He asserts that it will be essential if case studies become more widely used and if their successes are replicated so that we may learn from them.

According to the governor, the key to achieving rapid and lasting prosperity for institutional changes and transformation was to implement productive policies.

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and a special guest, also spoke and emphasised the necessity of educating Nigerians about the poor choices that led to the nation's bankruptcy and plugging that gap.

Sanusi advised the new administration to appoint qualified people to the appropriate posts in order to get things right.

“We are going to have a government sworn in May 29 and I think we have to start stating what is expected of that government.

“What do we, as Nigerians, classify as a milestone that shows we are heading to the right direction.

“We also need a government that understands the depth of the crises that we are.

"We all have a responsibility of conveying the implications of the policies that we recommend.

“We need to go back to that situation where politicians respect the independence, integrity and autonomy of these institutions and where these institutions are held accountable by the law setting them up to perform duties,” he said.

Speaking, Co-Founder of the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation and Chairman of Coronation Capital, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, emphasised that the gasoline subsidy was simply political and not based on reasoning.

He said that Nigeria's ability to process crude oil and produce refined petroleum goods will result in lower petroleum prices overall.

He continued by saying that the future administration should take into account budgetary consideration, debt restructuring, and significant private structural investment for economic growth.

Participants who bemoaned the withdrawal of gasoline subsidies demanded that resources be used effectively in its place under the next administration.