http://tonyowei./2013/01/11/fuel-subsidy-removal-a-year-after-by-tamara-kuro-owutu/


By this time last year, the attention of the world focused on Nigeria as the OCCUPY NIGERIA protest raged on. Thousands of Nigerians took to the streets of major cities of the country to protest the shocking removal of subsidy on premium motor spirit popularly known as petrol by the administration of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.

Nigerians were jolted few hours into the New Year when President Goodluck Jonathan brazenly announced the removal of subsidy on PMS in his New Year broadcast leading to an increase in the price of petrol from 65 Naira to 141 Naira in an attempt to ‘fully deregulate and privatize the down stream sector.’

Spontaneously, thousands of Nigerians, old and young, male and female, Christians and Muslims took to the streets to vent their anger at the perceived insensitive nature of the government, which they claimed is on a mission to further impoverish the masses with its anti-people policies.

It was almost a case of “when the present is intolerable, the unknown harbours no risk” as some youths vented their anger by the destruction of public properties.  Clashes with security personnel was a common sight as the protest intensified leading to few deaths and injuries across the nation.

The mass strike and uprising was called off after labour leaders and the federal government agreed to a suspicious compromise and finally settled for a price of 97 Naira with many Nigerians crying foul amidst rumours of a sell out by labour leaders.

A year after, a lot of questions have been left unanswered.

1)      Is the GEJ administration taken clear steps to revive our refineries? Are our refineries refining more crude or will it be importation as usual?

2)      Have the subsidy probe been handled with sincerity? How many of the culprits have been prosecuted? What clear steps are being taken to clean up our oil sector?

3)      Is President Jonathan living up to his promise of reducing his foreign trips to a barest minimum and also reducing the size of the entourage he takes on those trips?

4)      Where are the buses that were promised Nigerians to help attenuate the increased cost of transportation and reduce the burden on Nigerians? Was that promise fulfilled? Because I stay in the southern part of the country and I haven’t seen any of those buses.

5)      Was the subsidy protest a success or did the people who die in the course of the protest died in vain?

6)      Did Nigerians really buy petrol for 97 Naira in 2012? What is the government doing to ensure that petrol is sold at its official price across the nation?

7)      Have the funds saved from the government SURE-P program been utilized judiciously to improve the lives of Nigerians?

This and many more still lingers portraying the government has not concerned with the suffering of Nigerians.

Owutu Tamara Kuro is a Port Harcourt based writer. You can follow him on Twitter: @tammyDmilanista

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