A former Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II, has thrown his weight behind the removal of fuel subsidy and other measures being taken by the federal government to stabilize the economy.
In an interview on Arise TV on Friday, September 4, Sanusi said the move by the government was critical and the right thing to do.
He said: “Some of the recent measures announced, the measures borrowed from the IMF, the elimination of fuel subsidy, painful as those are, are the necessary adjustments we need to make in order to improve the revenue profile of the government.”
According to him, there is now improved transparency in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
“Just improving the transparency in the oil sector for example, it has its relative impact on government revenues,” he pointed out.
The former emir also spoke about government spending, calling for checks. He advised the government to make sure the spending is directed at the masses.
Sanusi is in support of FG’s decision to remove fuel subsidy. Photo Credit: @MSII_dynasty
Source: Twitter
According to him, rather than spend on beautiful bridges and skyscrapers, the government should direct the money to education, water and rural development which will benefit the people more.
Oil subsidy has been removed by the government which means the price of petroleum products are being determined by market conditions.
In the course of the week, the government announced an increase in the price of petrol. The Pipelines and Product Marketing Company (PPMC) said that the price of petrol has been increased to N151.56 per litre.
Same week, Nigerians were told that they would have to pay more for power supply following the implementation of the new electricity tariff regime which starts on September 1.
Nigerians are obviously not happy with these new decisions taken by the government and have expressed their displeasure.
Many on social media have taken to various platforms including Twitter and Facebook to express their displeasure over the recent pump price and electricity tariff hike.
“We have had enough. In these turbulent times, our country is pressing hard on all sides. The Price hike is unbelievable, how can I pay 58 from 27 naira per unit. Fuel 151 naira. How can things get this bad?” a Twitter user said.
Another described the move as insensitive, calling for “occupy Nigeria”.
Freelanews is the editorial byline of Freelanews.com, used for staff reports, news updates, press releases, and collaborative stories produced by the Freelanews Editorial Team.
