By Adewole Kehinde
I came across the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) statement saying they are already mobilizing their members to resist the removal of subsidies.
There is no harm in mobilizing but it is very dangerous to mobilize against a signed Law.
The Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) has been with the National Assembly for years with calls to all those concerned including Labours to make contributions, their voice was not heard then, but now that the Law is about to take effect, they are threatening to resist it!
Like I have written in various articles, it is only the enemy of the country that will kick against subsidy removal at this crucial time.
Nigeria cannot afford to be spending N3 trillion annually on fuel subsidies. A look at the macro-economic effects, reserves, the effect on our foreign exchange and more importantly the effect on investments is conspicuous.
The key is to recognise subsidies for what they are; a highly inefficient form of social assistance and to work on developing better alternatives. Identifying and building on existing social spending programmes that are working well is a good first step, as is increased investment to enhance capacity for the development and implementation of new social programmes. Many countries have been down this path, even when corruption levels have been uncomfortably high.
Alleging that the removal of petrol subsidy is an attempt to mobilize resources for the 2023 elections and not about the wellbeing of the people, is a misplaced statement from the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria
ASCSN leadership should know that the petrol subsidy is highly inefficient because 85 percent of Nigerians living on less than 500/day gain little directly, given they do not consume much petrol. And spending on health, education and development are sacrificed to pay for the costly fuel subsidy.
Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria should rather rally round the State Government in ensuring the payment of N30,000 minimum wage; compel on Discos to look into epileptic electricity supply and ensure Nigerians get prepaid meter at no cost; and ensure that both Federal and State Government provide adequate efficient public transportation as all these will improve the quality of life of Nigerians.
Nigeria cannot feed the entire West African sub-region with our Petroleum products. That is not sustainable unless the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria wants the entire economy to cripple.
I know the new government’s policy would not be easy on Nigerians but the subsidy removal would have a lot of social implications which includes inflationary implications, political costs for the ruling All Progressives Congress among other challenges.
Adewole Kehinde is a Public Affairs Analyst based in Abuja and can be reached via 08166240846, 08123608662. E-mail: kennyadewole@gmail.com
