The Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, has vowed to remove the controversial fuel subsidy if elected as president in 2023. Nigeria’s petrol subsidy as of 2021 cost around $4.5bn, or roughly two percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The reported figure exceeds the Nigeria’s Government’s spending on health, education, and social protection.
However, the Muhammadu Buhari Government has disclosed that it is not the right time to remove the costly fuel subsidy after several calls for immediate removal.
In an interview with Reuters on Monday, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, had said that the federal government postponed the planned petrol subsidy removal till further notice due to the economic woes and social disharmony in the country.
Speaking during an appearance on Arise TV on Wednesday, Obi said he would remove the fuel subsidy if elected President because it’s not beneficial to the country’s economy.
The former Anambra State governor described fuel subsidy as a scam, adding that he will replace the fuel subsidy with something that will benefit the country.
He said: “I will remove subsidy and look for something to replace it. The subsidy is a scam.
“It’s not going to be business as usual. You need to go back and read what one of my former aides wrote about how I used stinginess to cut the cost of governance.”
