Nonsense, are all the taxis, okadas using diesel for them to bring down the price of tfare? How about individuals using I PASS MY NEIGHBOUR GENERATOR at home?

1100 buses for 167 milion pple,dats funny.aw many BRT buses are in lag,which also ave city bus,lag bus n others, this shud be the joke of the month

Saw her on Al Jazeera

Lujan:

based on comments here, I believe that CIA and other western spy agents have infiltrated this forum with the aim making our dear country ungovernable. They want "gaint of Africa" to be another Afganistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Libya, etc. Nigerians let's not allow the evil plans of CIA to come to fulfilment.

Shebi UN, EU, IMF, World Bank, FBI, US Marines, CIA, MOSSAD and KGB supported the Fuel Subsidy Removal??

Abi you never hear the news ?  

So how are they infiltrating against it again?

Its so tough in the streets now, Ppl are already dying of starvation as we speak, GEJ and NOI has no clue wat d the true effects of dis infamous policy are. No matter how it goes, Nigeria will become ungovernable if the removal stays, Get into d hood an feel d pulse, its an impossible situation

By J Japheth

The person principally in charge of the Nigerian economy, former World Bank Managing Director Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala yesterday at a public forum to discuss the challenges facing the Nigerian economy looked overwhelmed and at times confused as she battled hard to answer a few questions even as she adroitly avoided answering some others.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala is Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy now expectedly referred to as the CME by a political class easily obsessed with slogans and acronyms. One of the questions Dr. Okonjo-Iweala avoided is the idea behind this piece. She could not explain the rationale behind the mind boggling and abnormal budgetary allocations to essentially guarantee a life of luxury to the ruling class.

Reading Nigeria’s budget is nothing different from reading a book containing the sharing formula for politicians and political office holders. It cost Nigerians about N1.3 trillion ($8.3 billion) to pay the salaries and allowances of political office holders. As a way of understanding this sum, N1.147 trillion ($7.4 billion) was ear marked for capital projects this year. Of this sum, just about half was truly spent which translates to the fact that, for every dollar the Nigerian government spends in developing capital infrastructure, two dollars are committed to paying the salaries of public office holders that have at best proved incompetent at bringing one of Africa’s biggest economies from the doldrums of economic failure.

This is not the sad part of the tale if you think that is sad enough. Do you know how this waste is funded? From borrowings! A total of $1.712 billion estimated at N265.36 billion is coming from countries such as India, China and France while the government is also expecting to wriggle out N794 billion ($5.1 billion) from the domestic market, bringing total borrowings for funding of fiscal 2012 at N1.059 trillion ($6.8billion). The Federal Government spending proposal for 2012 laid before the National Assembly by Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan is N4.7 trillion ($30.3 billion).

Coupled with this, the government is also expecting to borrow another N600 billion ($3.9billion) from the capital market to refinance matured loans.

Apart from the cost of borrowing, note that the bulk of these borrowings are spent essentially to subsidise, in fact to cater for the entire means of life of public service holders. The Nigerian system guarantees the payment of medical expenses of public service holders. These are monies paid to Egyptian, Indian, German and other hospitals across the world. Like the Governor of the Central Bank admitted at the same event, government officials do not pay to fuel their cars. The same way they have no idea what it cost to feed a family or even pay for other rents. Their entire means of livelihood is paid for by the taxes of a people who are increasingly poorer by the day.

[b]In 2009, Nigerian legislators received a total of N102.8 billion ($663.2 million) comprising “just” N11.8 billion ($76.1million) as salaries and a whopping N90.96 billion ($586.8 million) as allowances. The import of this gross disparity between salaries and allowances allows for just about 11% of their take home to be taxed. It would be fair to say they don’t even pay taxes to the people they so milk without regret. By comparison, let us compare the take home of probably the busiest public official in the world and Nigeria’s Senate President who is on holiday about a quarter of the year. Sourced figures indicate that the Nigeria Senate President has a total annual package amounting to N560million ($3.6million) compared to Barak Obama’s $400,000 (N62 million) as the President of the United States. Note that of Obama’s pay, $350,000 (almost 90 per cent) of that amount is taxed while just about 11 per cent of Nigeria’s senate president’s pay is taxed. The picture gets grimmer when you realise that it would take one Nigerian senator’s pay to pay the salaries of six American law makers. Compared to Nigeria lawmakers, Ghanaian parliamentarians are paupers!
[/b]
The recent 2012 budget proposal provides a daily meal package of about N2.4 million/day for the president and his vice. There are also provisions to get special cars each worth N280million ($1.8million) for the president and his vice. Out of all of these, Nigerians remain poor and compared to their rulers they look absolutely inconsequential in the scheme of payments. An average UK worker earns about 22 per cent of the pay of UK parliamentarians, an average French worker earns about 27 per cent of the pay of their lawmakers, an average Nigerian worker earns 0.13 per cent of the lawmakers’ pay. In essence they earn zilch compared to their lawmakers!
This is the foundation the Nigerian economy is built on. We have seen that apart from the obvious haemorrhage on the economy by corrupt public officials, besides the pains resulting from economic restrictions and shoddy economic decisions, Nigerians are forced to borrow to maintain the lives of their rulers.

Nigeria of course cannot continue to subsidise the existence of its public office holders. Something has to give. If this is allowed to continue, Nigeria will go down and there will be no EU or US to bail her out. One debtor cannot bail out the other.
Action: Reduce the pay of all public officials by at least 70 per cent. This still leaves them as amongst the highest earners in the world. Nigeria would save about $500 million/year from its lawmakers alone if this is done.
Stop the barefaced corruption called “Security votes” allocated to Governors to do whatever they deem fit.

If all else fail, resign enmasse!
J Japheth-Omojuwa writes on www.omojuwa.com!!!!

https://www.facebook.com/Shalake/posts/10150475802944436

femmy2010:

i wonder why she keep repeating that vehicles uses diesel when we have much more vehicles running on petrol.
What would she tell a transporter that bought petrol for N150 at against the previous N65?hmmm.

Like so many other things in that country, I don't think she and her team bothered to do their homework. It is clear from the initial claims that the poor in Nigeria do not in anyway benefit from subsidy program. I could not for the life of me understand how any person with an economic background would make such a claim especially in a place like Nigeria.

I expect that any rational being with even a basic understanding of economies would know that unless a whole economy is run exclusively on diesel, those who drive diesel buses will be affected by any rise in cost of other fuels, and will then have to increase fares in order to cover for the increase in spending elsewhere.

 Diesel Bus drivers dey buy food, products and services too. If cost of those go up, common sense suggests that the diesel bus driver will likely have to increase his charge in other to offset the costs on his end.

And honestly, I do not see the sense in this same Federal Government getting it's hands dirty with yet another subsidy, this time to the transportation sector. What good will that do anything? And how did they arrive at that as a solution when the very reason our transportation system remains in the stone age is because this same Federal Government has failed time and time again at maintaining and improving our federal road networks?

subsidy is the biggest scam of GEJ to date

as far as i'm concerned her supervision of the latest round of outrageous executive profligacy, in the shambles that is the 2012 budget, has shot her credibility to pieces in my eyes. under her watch, we now have to dole out 1billion to feed 2 folks & their families. yet she threatened resignation unless her viscious attack on the masses - the poorly prepared oil subsidy removal - was executed. i'd personally let her return to her world bank pronto

Mrs. Minister does not get it.

A few thousand buses cannot solve even the transportation problems that will come from removing the subsidy.  You say government does not have money, yet the waste continues.


The reason petrol is expensive in Nigeria is because it is  IMPORTED. Keep the subsidy until you have done the following:

1. Repair our existing refineries to function at full capacity

2. Encourage investors to build new refineries with the promise that the day they begin production subsidy will be removed.

3. Eliminated the gross waste in government. The presidency cannot propose to spend billions of naira on food and entertainment and expect Nigerians to make this kind of sacrifice. If the executive and legislative arms of government do not collect their allowances (not salaries) for 2012, we would have enough money to subsidize petrol.


@SINJU,
PLS DONT TELL THESE VAGABONDS IN POWER WHAT TO DO ANYMORE, THEY ALREADY KNOW IT.
THEY JUST PLAYING STUPID OR ARE ACTUALLY STUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUPID!

A true leader, practicing what he preaches:

If she was expecting a lavish treat, she was in for a sore surprise.
Mindful of how a luxury holiday would appear amid massive public spending cuts, David and Samantha Cameron flew to Spain with budget airline Ryanair to celebrate her 40th birthday.  

And despite their wealth, they stayed in a ‘mid-market’ hotel.
A fellow passenger took a photograph of the couple in the departure lounge ahead of the flight from Stansted airport to Malaga, in southern Spain, on Wednesday afternoon. They will fly home today.
As the school holidays have not yet started, they left their three children in Britain.
But by an unfortunate quirk of the British weather, yesterday temperatures here hit 23C – the same as their Spanish destination.
After the two-hour flight they were driven to Granada, where yesterday morning they visited the Alhambra, a magnificent palace and fortress built by the region’s Moorish leaders in the 14th century.
They did not pre-arrange the visit to the Unesco World Heritage Site, it is understood.
The couple were then photographed strolling through El Realejo, a  pretty neighbourhood of the Andalucian city – the Prime Minister dressed casually in trainers
They are also thought to have visited the Mirador San Nicolas, which offers spectacular views of the Alhambra and the whole of Granada.
Mrs Cameron does not turn 40 until April 18,  but the couple took the opportunity of the start of the Easter parliamentary recess to get away.
It is their first foreign holiday since he became Prime Minister last May, and Cabinet colleagues have been urging him to take a break.
The couple aborted plans for a luxury family holiday in Thailand at Christmas amid fears it would appear excessive at a time when thousands were losing their jobs.
It is not known how much they paid for the Ryanair flights, but an equivalent return trip next week would cost £152 each.
They are staying in a three-star family-run hotel, where a double room costs 120 euros (£105) a night.
Downing Street insiders stressed that the hotel was ‘mid-market’.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-1374747/David-Cameron-takes-wife-Samantha-Ryanair-Granada-Spain.html

This is why removing the subsidy is good for Nigeria (or why there are no bakeries in Nigeria).

1.  In the 1970s and 80s Naija-land built two bread bakeries. The bakeries were owned by the state. Two decades previously, Naija-land had discovered large quantities of oil. Flush with income from the oil, the government decreed that the bakeries should sell bread at N65, even though it costs about N140 to bake a loaf of bread.

2.  So from the outset the bakeries operate at a loss and have to rely on government subventions to remain operational.

3.  Incidentally, the government also adopts a similar policy for the other sectors of Naija-land. Its spanking new universities and hospitals are free, it creates monopolies to provide cheap power and cheap telecoms, and its banking sector is heavily regulated and consists of only 5 or 6 banks. Almost everything in newly rich Naija-land is provided for free by the government.

4.  But as the years go by and the government's revenues declines, and Naija-land's population increases (from 50m to130 to 170m), it becomes increasingly difficult for the government to fund the bakeries (and the other sectors).

5.  By the end of the 1980s the government is broke and heavily indebted. Creditors and multilateral agencies put pressure on government to streamline its obligations and reduce its spending. They suggest that the government should deregulate the bakery sector, the power sector, the telecom sector and the financial sector. The government (led by Gen BIB), and supported by the trade unions, refuse but later relents and in 1989/90 deregulates only the financial sector.

6.  The result is spectacular. The newly deregulated financial sector go on to become one of the most dynamic sectors of the economy and some of the banks created in 1990 (Zenith, GTB etc) go on to become some of the most successful businesses created in Africa since the end of the colonial era.

7.  But the government (supported by the trade unions) refuses to implement any further restructuring. Naija-land limps on, broke, economically stagnant and politically unstable. By the late1990s, the bakeries are practically moribund (after billions had been spent on them, much of it siphoned off corruptly). Naija-land now starts importing bread from abroad. Licensed traders buy the bread abroad for N140 and sell locally at N65. The government refunds them the balance of N75. Naija-land’s forex reserves come under pressure, as the purchases are now made in hard currency. The new system fuels corruption, with the middle men becoming some of the richest people in the country. Some appear in the Forbes list of the richest people in the world.

8.  By the year 2000, as the government’s finances continue to deteriorate (and with Naija-land now among the biggest sovereign debtors in the world), the government makes another push to streamline its finances. The new civilian government of Chief JOB, despite opposition from the labour union, decides to deregulate the telecom sector (which like the bakery sector was totally dependent on government funding and barely functional).

9.  Again, the result of the liberalization is spectacular. The total number of phones in Naija-land soars from about 250k to about 60 million in a decade. Naija-land becomes the largest telecom market in Africa and one of the fastest growing in the world. The telecom sector becomes the biggest contributor to Naija-land’s non-oil GDP growth.

10.  Buoyed by the successful of the telecom deregulation, the government decides that it will deregulate the bakery and the power sectors too. But to do that it would first have to remove the price caps on bread (N65) and power. Nobody will build a bakery if they have to produce at N140 and sell at N65. And nobody is ready to sell at N65 and then go and lobby and bribe government officials to be paid the difference (N75), especially at a time when it was becoming obvious that the government could not afford to pay. But again there is vocal opposition from the trade unions and some Naija-land citizens and so the government backs down. The government manages to remove the subsidy for diesel-bread, but not for the more popular (and more financially burdensome) regular bread.

11.  So the status quo remains unchanged and by 2011 the government is spending about a quarter (25% of the annual federal budget) to import bread from abroad. The impact of this on Naija-land’s forex reserve and currency is devastating. Despite oil at over $100 a barrel, Naija-land’s forex reserves continued to decline partly because of the increased forex cost of buying bread abroad and reselling at N65. The Naira comes under severe pressure, forcing the CBN to further deplete the reserves in other to protect the currency. And of course, attempts to attract private sector investment into the bread sector are futile.

12.  Meanwhile, increasingly desperate about the power sector, the government (despite opposition again from the unions and after spending billions on a National Integrated Power Project) finally announces an ambitious deregulation of the power sector, in the process removing all price caps in the sector. Private sector interest is immediate and strong, and there is now the possibility that the power sector will over the next few years see significant investment and improvement.

13.  Finally, in 2012, the government ends the bread subsidy. It mismanages the communication of the new policy, focusing on the savings to the government (in a country where, for good reason, governments are not trusted) rather than on the savings to the economy via new investments into the bread sector and forex savings when domestic bakeries emerge. Predictably, the trade unions oppose the new policy and call a nationwide strike.

14.  Nigeria is poised for a big fight whose outcome could determine the fate of the country for perhaps another decade—economic stagnation and possibly political instability if the subsidy is maintained; or economic prosperity and political stability if the distorting, corrupt and unsustainable subsidy goes. I hope the government prevails.

Sometimes I miss Abacha !

Will the 1100 buses be intercity or intracity? Will it be functioning as a cab or taxi, or doing the work of okada? Answer me madam minister?

Thank God there is no strike, any of my staff not reporting to work is FIRED as a matter pf personal sentiment !

mohid:

I watched that clip on Al-Jazeera and was shocked that our own Harvard-trained, World Bank M.D had suddenly become incomprehensible and surprisingly simpleminded. Her responses on the introduction of hundreds of buses in our cities with bad road networks shows the huge disconnect between those in govt. and the realities on ground. Worse was the statement about child immortality rate high and the need to channel subsidy funds to help curb it, it all sounded more like what a poorly schooled Local govt. Chairman will say to justify his forthcoming allocation he intends to embezzle. Funny how suddenly PhD’s suddenly sound witless in the moronic enclave that is the PDP, It only proves the Bible is always correct, "he that is a companion of fools shall be foolish".

I go laugh die oooo

Lol. I don't know why it's so difficult for people to understand, but the reason a so called "highly educated" person begins to sound like a dunce is simply because she hurriedly put together a wad of lies. And she's quite surprised that these "illiterate" Nigerians have her figured out. Once again, the money they are trying to make will not be used for infrastructure; they will be used to pay debts to those she represents in Nigeria.

@Chuba1 Commendable write-up. I call it, a piece of artwork cos I can visualize it

There is something in the tea they serve in Aso rock that corrupts the brain.
This interview is proof.

Mrs minister, has never worn the shoe before so shes free to talk that way,  ok is it part of the plan for consumer goods and services to be increase, even hospitals has increase their services price. 70% of the population are poor the removal of the oil subsidy will immediately increase their sufferings. sooner people will soon start hanging themselves when their is no way out
in Nigeria when price goes up becoz of any Policy it will never come back to normal.

I guess the buses will be used in fuelling our generators and those of SMEs around?

I listened to this woman and instantly lost all respect for her, Its unbelievable the rubbish that is coming out of her mouth. Her inability to see that this policy will kill the people she is saying they want to save, Telling us that infant mortality is high and the money from the fuel subsidy will be put into improving health care,
1) If children are born and there is no food to eat, that is equivalent to infant mortality
2) You improve health care, but people cannot afford to take themselves and their infants to the hospital , that is equivalent to infant mortality and paternal mortality,

I can go on and on picking holes in her argument.

What I thinks is happening is that NIGERIA IS BROKE AND INDEBTED, They have spent all our money and are desperately looking for funds to run the government, and the number 1 culprit is the president and his cohorts, no, They wasted our entire resource on last years stupid elections and are now running all over the place looking for funds, This will explain the reason why they are levying aviation, why they want to put back the toll gates, the New plate numbers, the new drivers license, more clearing agencies at the port, THESE PEOPLE ARE DESPERATELY LOOKING FOR MONEY

They are desperately looking for money to maintain their extravagant and corrupt life style and they want this money to come out of your pocket.

jonathan i have a solution*
u love nigeria right?
Ur govt cant run nigeria with subsidy?
Can u do the ultlimate sacrifice and resign u and ur whole cabinet?
Mark will take over and we will find another alternative*
all this tension is unwarranted

nagoma:

They are desperately looking for money to maintain their extravagant and corrupt life style and they want this money to come out of your pocket.

Haba, the little revenue the country generates is enough for that. But God forbid they take out of that little money to pay their debtors. That will be bad for business.

It's sad and unfortunate. we are in a bigger mess than we ever thought! this is our minister in charge of the economy?!!!

What the.?!!

ATTENTION ALL NIGERIANS OUT TO PROTEST TODAY!!!!!!

Lets change the focus of our protest. ALL politicians and political appointees should take a 70% pay cut!!!!

What the, @***??!!! If we refer to developments in the west, they are quick to tell us " NIGERIA IS NOT AMERICA"
and they get paid more than any public officer in the world!!

kai!!!! imagine we spend billions to feed the leaders and their familes? madam minister is doing image cleansing for FG.

the "diesel bus diver" has to buy food, water and clothes from the petrol-bnusinesses!!! so he will soon hike his diesel swallowing bus!!! what kind of experts do we have in charge in this country?!!
so you want to use the subsidy proceeds to power "maternal or infant health or something? what the>>>!?? I thought there was a budget for health in the first place!!!

somebody please help me here, dont we get funds from the african development bank and other world bodies for certain projects like polio, etc?
Bill and melinda gates foundation just helped with malaria and poilo!!!! please NIGERIA, lets demand a mass resignation of these people or a 70% cut of all thier income from government purse!!!!

wat the, !!?

wht gej is trying to do with subsidy removal can be likened to d case of a contractor asking for more money to roof d house when he cannot account for the funnds given to him to riase the house from foundation stage.

The key problem is dat d govt has shown no transperency and have been unable to justly account for huge funds deevoted to it in time past begging d question why nigerians should sacrifice more when the major issues of corruption and insecurity still terrorize d polity.

I'm still waiting for a sound reason for subsidy removal. If my govt provides enof secuirty so dat i can live wherever i like, my home and business have uninterruptrd power supply, i dont have to visit d mechanic to change shocks because of bad roads, i have accees to quality healthcare and welfare benefits and tax incentives r in place to encourage or support me as a business man, tell me why i should not pay tax and even more tax, tell me why i shld not advocate for d sacricice of removal of subsidy?

Subsidy removal in the absence of an enabling environment is d final straw in d suffering of nigerians. We cant keep being told so many stories dat will come online when we sacrifice. We have been sacrificingfor so many yrs while govt has grown fat on d good of d land. This time let govt show leadership by suffering for d good of d pple. Nothing stops gej froms ecuring loans to get d refineries fully operational if need be. There are so many leakges in govt. How can they come out publicly to allege that a cabal is benefiting from d subsidy not nigerians. Wht has govt done to expose and prosecute such crimes? How can ppra pay for products which are not delivered? Does it mean if i go there with d right papers and not a drop of oil i will be paid?

Does all this not point back to d gross failure of govt? How then can such a failed govt be trusted to properly manage funds freed if subsidy is removed.

As they say, remove d log in your govt eye GEJ. Address corruption first.

That is even why GEJ is afrad to expose those behind boko haram even though he knows them.

We are tired of empty words sir goodluck. Action is what we need. Actions speak louder than words.