nakedall:

"Sanusi spoke in Lagos at the opening of a two-day Town Hall meeting on the controversial proposed fuel subsidy removal. The parley was organized by the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN). Sanusi said Nigeria lost $16 billion on subsidy this year"

Mr. Sanusi, Can we also get the figures of how much we lost to looters this year and to waste spending?

definitively, the amount is far more than this $16 billion.

GEJ and his bodies are playing game, let them come out straight that the removal of subsidy is specially designed to target opposition parts (Tinubu) and some businessmen that are not submitting to them (Odetola) for example. hatred and bitterness!

However, GEJ is still remain unpopular and the worst president in the history of our nation!

The Government needs to explain how exactly it lost $16 Billion this year in subsidy for fuel, if what Jonathan Goodluck said today, that there are no cabal but simply marketers and minor marketers doing their business under the law.

Nigeria is not the only country out there with a subsidy program. So if there is no Cabal, and the marketers are simply enjoying loopholes provided them under the law, why or how did we loose $16 billion when the loopholes they feasted on where in a word created for them by the same government?

We need to go back to true federalism, where the states will be independent of the center. This will promote healthy competition among the states. We need to cut government spending, cut legislators and other government officials emolument. The emolument of legislators should just be a bit higher than that of civil servants. If this is done, we will then know those are patriotic and willing to serve.

To hell with subsidy, Let them remove it.

We need to go back to true federalism, where the states will be independent of the center. This will promote healthy competition among the states. We need to cut government spending, cut legislators and other government officials emolument. The emolument of legislators should just be a bit higher than that of civil servants. If this is done, we will then know those are patriotic and willing to serve.

@bisijohn,
pls permit me to call your president a LIAR.
in america, teachers who along the line become govs will end up going back to the classroom at the end of his tenure as a gov. how can we have doctors who after becoming ordinary councellors will never ever go close to their hospitals again? our president knows that what he and his cabinets are earning are not salaries rather something else. why is politics the most lucrative business/profession in afrcia, nigeria especially?
if they want to help the masses or develope nigeria, they know what and what to change. why are ppl killing others, destroying properties importing bombs and grenades to win elections? why sharing rice, biscuits, unbrellas and money to get ppl's votes?
andy uba was sacked as a gov and now sacked as a senator but there is still hop[e for him to be a president of nigeria one day because nobody is thinking of putting him in jail.
if jega is not asking this idiot how he manipulated the much praised election, then we have a legalized corrupt group of idiots in charge of our country.
subsidy can only rpovide this set of rulers the opportunity to loot more than the past rulers.
what happened to the recovered loots of abacha?

PHIPEX:

Am not in support of the excess life style of thesame people that are telling us to endure this "hardship" for a better tomorrow but I also don't think that the removal of this subsidy will lead to our death. Even while we had the subsidy, the price of this same article was increased for more 500% btw 1999 and 2007 yet we all survived. Ordinarily the best thing would hv been to put the refinaries in order first but that will be like asking the Obasanjo's administration to put NITEL in order before introducing GSM due to its higher cost. From the moment I started following petro-politics in Nigeria, repairing of refinaries has always been in the news yet no solution in sight how do we then think that the solution will come now with the likes of OBJ and others that feed fat on its inefficiencies still very much alive? As far as am concerned it may be in our best interest in the long run if this evil called subsidy is taken away once and forall cos even if its retained it will not stop them from increasing the pump price for more than 200% btw now and 2015. remember that the question noe is increasing it for about 100%.

Very well-stated,  If only we can have more logical minds like you and i. We are already far worse than Greece!  Removal of the damn subsidy is a great solution, so also is fiscal federalism. NASS and Executive allowances should be reduced by 70% as well.  Surely we are not going to die if the subsidy is removed.  We should be campaigning for power improvement - this will have a better economic impact than getting cheap fuel.

Very well-stated, If only we can have more logical minds like you and i. We are already far worse than Greece! Removal of the damn subsidy is a great solution, so also is fiscal federalism. NASS and Executive allowances should be reduced by 70% as well. Surely we are not going to die if the subsidy is removed. We should be campaigning for power improvement - this will have a better economic impact than getting cheap fuel.

@ceejayluv,
do u have any idea of how much our FG recovered from the abachas and can you point to one thing or in which way(s) can you say such funds helped our ministries?
if jonathan and his wagon of criminals are genuine, there won't be any need for this discussion of whether make we remove or not. if our refineries start working today and we still have excess oil in our grounds, who will think of importing fuel and subsidizing fuel?
do you know that jonathan's administration has increased electricity tariff and removed fertilizer subsidy yet we are still where we are in supply?
why is it that nigeria is importing everything including pineapple and rice?
who is deceiving who? how will u believe that a big and bless like nigeria does not have an airline, no roads, hospitals -no, security - story, schools - igba, yet we hear about the bankoles, obasanjos, bode georges, mrs goodluck and a very long lists of criminals turn rulers stealing away billions on daily basis.
look at the kind of world cup south africa organized and think about the doors such event opened for the country.
in all, fuel subsidy is the only benefit we get from all our God's given blessings and some goats want it removed.
when we rejected obasanjo's third term agenda, he punished us with an indirect rule that produced yar adua and now jonathan. if we reject this fuel subsidy, sanusi is saying we will perish but i know he is not our God so i will him and his family among other things to perish now and for ever more.
how can an individual insult a whole nation when he knows men of his father's age are here.
sanusi, u perish in the morning, noon and night.

What is jonathan waiting for? Remove the damn thing already. Way to go

Its all lies.Lets call a spade a spade. Let Jonathan tell us how the country has spent on governance since 1999 till date.The government needs more money for the payment of senators and house of reps members.Let him tell Nigerians how much these thieves take home monthly including the senate president.The military remains the best option.All the palliatives are lies.

MarcAnthon:

The whole argument on whether or not subsidy should be removed should not arise in the first place, since, in truth, there is no subsidy in the first place.

Please everyone should take time out and read this article: http://saharareporters.com/article/real-cost-nigeria-petrol-dr-izielen-agbon

Check out the relative cost of petrol in other OPEC nations:

1. Venezuela: Caracas — 2-3p per litre  (that is about N7 per litre)
2. Saudi Arabia: Riyadh — 8p per litre   (about N20 per litre)
3. Libya: Tripoli — 9p per litre
4. Turkmenistan: Ashgabat — 12p per litre
5. Bahrain: Manama — 13p per litre
6. Kuwait: Kuwait City — 14p per litre
7. Qatar: Doha — 15p per litre
8. Egypt: Cairo — 19p per litre
9. Oman: Muscat — 20p per litre
10. Algeria: Algiers — 20p per litre   (about N51 per litre)

Source: http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/The-cheapest-petrol-world-yahoofinanceuk-978605645.html  [url]https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-769214.0.html
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And some of these countries like Egypt, are not even major oil producing countries. Venezuela has not increased oil prices for the past 20 years! Their economy has not crashed.

Let's not give an inch in this matter. No wonder these guys can afford to spend billions on food and vehicles and aircraft replacement even when there is nothing wrong with the current ones, and our assembly men earn even more than the US president. It's all insane. It is an insult to the Nigerian people that we should even be talking about this while they go on with business as usual.

Enough is definitely enough!

Did you seriously read the yahoo UK article? 
Let me repost a paragraph for you.
**********************
A matter of context

Now, before you all start weeping at the prospect of 2p per litre petrol, it's worth remembering that these insanely low rates almost always come at some cost.

Take Venezuela. Yes, the country may have outrageously low petrol prices. But vast numbers of its residents live in poverty - the UN calculates 30% of the population live on less than $2 a day. As The Guardian's South America correspondent Rory Carroll points out, some analysts place the overall cost to economy of maintaining such low petrol prices (through subsidies and loss of taxation) at around £13bn. That's more than double the education and health budgets.

But this doesn't mean that the cost of petrol isn't unfairly high in this country, especially when you consider that the UK is actually amongst the top 20 oil producing countries in the world.
****************

Conclusion is that subsidy comes at a cost!! and by the way, which Oil producing country with HALF of our population still subsidizes their fuel!!?

^Well said. Every country has its peculiarities and population size is a huge determinant of how resources should be managed. Subsidy is not for Nigeria, it is for countries like Qatar.

When I was in London. I didn't have to use a car. Train was perfectly working, everywhere I go, and my oyster card worked seamlessly with the bus. I didn't have to fuel my generator. So really, if fuel prices went as high as £10 per litre, why should I care, the electricity is there, my business does not need the fuel, I don't even need to use my damn car!

But Nigeria is the damn direct opposite. All my businesses have generators and run on generator, FUEL!, in my house I use generator!, FUEL , I don't even want to use the damn car, cos Lagos road don scatter am, I want to use a public transport, but where is it?, OKADA?, shit, just broke my leg earlier, so, I have to buy FUEL again.

I have direct NEED for fuel every single second of the day. How do you expect my business to survive?, won't I have to sack more people!,

I think he should remove the damn subsidy, so that we can start by killing all of them one after the other, does that wish me death, must die first!

I thought Nigeria had oil ? how can we subsidies what we presumably have in abundance. There is a lot of miss-information in this debate. It is better to fix this problem once and for all, we need local refineries not IMF policy prescriptions.

I think it's better to allow the economy crash if it wants to as I'm benefitting nothing from the economy presently.

IT IS OBVIOUS THAT SUBSIDY REMOVAL WILL FURTHER IMPOVERISH THE ALREADY POOOOR PEOPLE. I WILL ONLY FAVOUR THE RICH LIKE GOODLUCK AND CO, WHO RECEIVE FREE FUELS DAILY. SO WHO IS FOOLING WHO? WILL ALL TOP CIVIL SERVANTS AGREE TO SACRIFICE SOMETHING BY HAVING THEIR BIGGER PAY PACKAGES CUT JUST A LITTLE?? WILL GOODLUCK OR NOW BADLUCK FOR NIGERIA LEAD BY SLASHING THE HUGE SECURITY BILL FOR HIMSELF,THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL AND THE GREEEEEEEEEDY STATE GOVERNORS?? SPECIAL APOLOGIES TO ROCHAS OKOROCHA, HAS NGOZI IWEALA NOW BECOME A NIGERIAN TO RECEIVE HER SALARIES IN NAIRA? PLEASE SANUSI ANSWER BEFORE CRASHING THE REAL NIGERIA!!!!!!

Somebody pls tell this "most intelligent man" dt its nt only removal of d fuel subsidy dt will boost nigeria economy. He shld advice GEJ to prune his cabinet,slash to 50% d take home allowances of our N/A members and ministers. Even dt of CBN staff.

The Muslim Congress (TMC) joins well-meaning Nigerians, advocacy groups, labour unions and civil societies to condemn the proposal, its policy justifications and therefore advise that the proposal be suspended with immediate effect. Previous administrations like the present one have made the same promise, but end up unleashing undeserved punishment on innocents Nigerians. We tender this position paper on behalf of the demoralized, pauperized and exploited Nigerians to the Lagos State House of Assembly stating why the ill-conceived and anti-people policy on fuel pricing deregulation should not be allowed to see the light of the day.

FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL IN RETROSPECT
Fuel subsidy removal is a hoax and a diabolical neo-imperialist agenda orchestrated by the ruling elites in conjunction with the European development fund (EDF) and International Monetary Funds (IMF) to deregulate the downstream oil sector for their self-fish ends. Ironically, the proposed removal of fuel subsidy is antithetical to all the extant developmental agenda of the Nigerian government especially the millennium development goal (MDG 1), which seeks to reduce the number of people living in poverty by 2015. Any attempts to increase pump prices of petroleum products would be at variance with global concern for the low levels of economic growth, poverty-reduction thrust of Vision 2020 and the alarming human development index in Nigeria. Do we have blind economists and deaf policy-makers? Can they not visualize the impending economic Tsunami to be unleashed on Nigerians on account of this proposed policy?

There are several people-friendly policy options for repositioning the nation’s sinking oil industry and refineries, without inflicting unnecessary pains on the poor masses for no fault of theirs. The nation’s refineries went bad on account of poor maintenance culture by the bureaucrats, bad governance, economic and moral corruption, profligacy and culture of mediocrity. Why are the Economic Team and policy-makers advancing stale argument of fuel subsidy removal as the only option that would take Nigeria to the proverbial El-Dorado?

The bitter truth that The Muslim Congress desires to present before this honorable House is that retrospectively there has never been any time the Federal Government of Nigeria subsidized petroleum products. It is a straw-man argument forced on our psyche and subconscious minds through sophistry and propaganda. Even Prof Tam David West, a patriot and a former Petroleum minister (1984-1985) under the Buhari-Idiagbon regime lent credence to our assertion above that there was no subsidy whatsoever in the production and distribution of fuel before 1986 and to date contrary to the fallacious statement of the pro-fuel subsidy removal advocates siding with federal government. Surprisingly, all previous administrations (military and democratic regimes) that ruled Nigeria from 1986 have always recycled the same argument of fuel subsidy as the only solution to optimal utilisation and supply of fuel in Nigeria.

It is on record that fuel subsidy removal was started by the Maradonic government of Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) in 1986. He asserted that petrol was too cheap at 23 kobo per litre relative to what obtained in other parts of Africa. The regime on the strength of impunity, power of the gun and sophistry reviewed the price of petrol from 30k to 50k per litre (corresponding to 67% increase). In 1991, a litre of petrol was increased further to 70k (40% increase), a price tag that was maintained till 1993 when IBB was forced by popular wish of Nigerians to live the scene.

As if Nigerian leaders are bereft of wisdom, the Chief Ernest Shonekan led government as soon as he was handed over the mantle of leadership chorused the same old song - Nigerian fuel is heavily subsidized thus making it cheapest across Africa. He thereafter wasted no time in pushing for an upward review. His tenure, though the shortest in the nation’s history increased the pump price from 70k to N5 per litre (this implies 614% increase).

Late General Sani Abacha, on assumption of office slashed the price from N5.00 to N3.25 (35% reduction). This was a palliative strategy crafted to gain acceptability from the disillusioned and poverty-stricken Nigerians. He later showed his true colour by increasing with impunity the pump price from N3.25 to N11.00 per litre in October 1994 (this translates to 239% increase). The proceeds from the fuel subsidy removal were kept in a dedicated account called Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF). The PTF was established with the policy thrust of bringing about accelerated socio-economic development in Nigeria using the revenue accumulated from fuel subsidy removal.
When General Abdus-salami Abubakar took over in 1998 shortly after the demised of his former boss; he increased the pump price of petrol from N11 to first N25 (corresponding to 127% increase). This outrageous increment attracted widespread outbursts, condemnations and criticisms from the organized labour unions, civil societies and general public. Consequently, the government reduced the pump price from N25 to N20 on 6th January 1999 (20% reduction).
President Olusegun Obasanjo after being sworn-in as a democratically elected President in 1999 started another cycle of arbitrary hike in fuel prices under the pretext of deregulation of the downstream sector for optimal efficiency, need for turn-around maintenance (TAM) of the four malfunctioning refineries and need to free government fund from wasteful and unnecessary fuel subsidy. Like his predecessor, he increased the pump price from N20 per litre to N30 (corresponding to 50% increase), but on account of pressures from angry Nigerians and formidable civil societies reviewed the price to N22 (translating to 27% reduction). After a few period of relief Obasanjo like Pharaoh increased the price per liter to N26 (18% increase) in 2002 and then to N40 (54% increase) per litre in 2003. Tough postures of Nigerian labour activists and students’ unions forced the government to reduced fuel price to N34 (15% reduction), but the Obasanjo’s administration later increased the price of fuel to N40 (18% increase) in 2006 and lastly to N75 (corresponding to 87.5%) before his exit from power in 2007.
It was only late President Musa Yar’adua that was humane, passionate and responsive to the yearning of exploited Nigerians. Despite all entreaties by the neoliberal oil cabal and one-eyed IMF economists, he refused to buy into the fuel subsidy removal proposition when advised to do so. Rather, he reduced the price from N75 to N65 (13% reduction) in 2007, which is the price that has subsisted till date. Honorable members of the Lagos State House of Assembly, this is the story!
OUR POSITION, THE PEOPLE’S POSTION
The position of The Muslim Congress is total rejection of the proposed fuel subsidy removal because it is shrouded in ambiguity and it is a recycled neoliberal argument that that lame predecessors of Jonathan have advanced and implemented without nothing to show for the exercise in terms of infrastructural development. The policy is also deceptive because each time the subsidy is removed; the proceeds therefrom developed wings and end up in private coffers. History is the best teacher! We have seen Petroleum Ministers and their cohorts become millionaires overnight by feeding on saved fuel subsidies. They ride in the latest posh cars in town and own jets. They own intimidating real estate properties in Ajah, Asokoro, Abu Dhabi and Texas. We wish to caution the government that fuel subsidy removal is similar to the devaluation policy forced on Nigerians by IMF during IBB’s regime. To date Nigeria has not fully recovered from the devastating consequences of weak national currency against the dollar and pounds. In retrospect, fuel subsidy removal in Nigeria has often times inflict serious and unpalatable negative repercussions on the average Nigerians in the forms of hike in the pump price of fuel, inflationary pressures, hopelessness, unbearable transport fares, rising school fees, arbitrary increment of house rent, sky-rocketing foodstuffs and even death.

POLICY PRESCRIPTIONS
In view of the various rebuttals against fuel subsidy removal presented above, it is expedient that the government of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan should make concerted effort to rehabilitate the nation’s four refineries for optimal performance, fight against petroleum sector corruption and endemic operational inefficiencies of NNPC rather than embark on lazy and fruitless campaign for fuel subsidy removal. We proffer the following additional policy prescriptions:

a) We want the issue of fuel subsidy removal or otherwise to be put to national debate for robust analysis by the professionals, labour unions, students’ unions, religious organisations, civil societies and the intellectual community. This is imperative in order to have consensus position on why the policy of fuel subsidy removal, how should it be implemented if the consensus is pro-fuel subsidy removal, when should it commenced and who handles the proceeds saved. Before then, the Federal Government should mandate NNPC to provide Nigerians with valuable data and information on: How was the previous subsidy proceeds spent from 1986 - 2007? Who are the real or faceless beneficiaries from the previous fuel subsidy? Has subsidy removal really benefitted Nigerians or the oil cabal? Let Nigerians see it in black and white.

b) We propose the establishment of loot recovery funds (LRF). This entails sincere arrest; prosecution and conviction of corrupt Presidents, Governors, Ministers, Commissioners, Chairmen of Boards, other political office holders and oil marketers who constitute the cabal that have benefited and feed fat on fuel subsidy removal, embezzlement of funds and diversion of government monies from 1986 to date. The proceeds from the LRF should be used to rehabilitate the nation’s comatose refineries, infrastructural development similar to PTF management by General Muhammad Buhari under Sani Abacha and if need be utilised for continued fuel subsidy.

c) The Federal Government of Nigeria should send high-powered delegation and intervention team to Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Iran, Kuwait et cetera to under study the way these nation sustainably manage their oil resources and their national refineries for the betterment of their citizens. Nigerians are tired of “recycled neo-liberal argument of no fuel subsidy removal no economic development”. There are multi-dimensional options for solving the nation’s oil pricing crisis. Enrique Arundel, the Venezuelan ambassador to Nigeria had once cautioned the Federal Government and its oil bureaucrats against continued subsidy removal, stating that his country not only subsidized for its citizens but also other neighbouring countries. He identified Nigeria’s problem as preference for export as opposed to massive refining of her crude oil locally. Resolve to produce more of the country’s crude oil locally calls for accelerated turn-around maintenance (TAM) or outright building of new ones. The benefits of this include higher stakes in a deregulated market, stimulation of medium scale enterprises and access to greater job opportunities for the unemployed youth that have resorted to hostage taking, militancy, Boko Haram and Area urchins.
We therefore call on President Goodluck Ebele Azikwe Jonathan to dump into dust-bin the idea of increasing the pump price of petroleum products. It was not part of his electoral promises that he would remove fuel subsidy. Why now? Let us play games following laid down rules. Rules are not change while the games have begun. We also advise the National Assembly to reject Mr. President’s proposal as irresponsible, tyrannical, ill-timed and the usual conduit-pipe design by the oil bureaucrats in NNPC and corridors of power to siphon the nation’s hard-earned income. After all, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, and Venezuela are oil producing nations with records of stable and cheap energy. Why should Nigerians pay through their nose to enjoy free gift of God. Those in government should learn from the Arab Spring and the periodic fall of tyrants in different parts of the world. Gone are the days of impunity, tyranny and dictatorship.

Long live Federal Republic of Nigeria, God Bless Nigeria!

SIGNED

Luqman AbdurRaheem, MNIM, AMIMC, AMIOE
Amir, The Muslim Congress

God bless you Sanusi!

Nigeria Government is being remoted/seated upon by the outside world the anti-Christ, minimum wage is 9K, eduction fee is 250K i called it anti-Christ government-economy. again the minimum wage 9K to buy fuel at 150-130N & pay school fees 150K-250K?

This is the funniest post I have read in a long time.

Who the heck are you? @SayoSalt, Who do you think the Nigerian Government really is? It is the People of Nigerian since we decide those to lead, every other year. All this Anti-Christ nonsense you dey spill here, I hope it is not excuse for you not acting to change things at all? You people should learn to leave God out of these things. He didn't force millions to go to the polls and vote the same things in at the National and Local levels.

Kobojunkie,
U probably don't have mind for the poor, u probably not rooted well in christianity, you are satisfied and u probably eating from government free money, public money .