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The World Bank has raised alarm, saying further delay in removing the fuel subsidy which had been described as a major drain and waste on the economy could make the federal and state governments to be unable to pay salaries from 2022.
The Lead Economist, Nigeria Country office of the World Bank, Marco Antonio Hernandez, painted a gloomy picture of Nigeria if the country decides to continue with the controversial fuel subsidy, while unveiling the Nigeria Development Update (NDU), a bi-annual report of the multilateral institution, at an even that held in Abuja as well as virtual.
Also, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari, during a panel session at the event, lamented the huge burden the continuous retention of the subsidy on petrol had been to the corporation, warning that going forward, “the NNPC may have to start invoicing the federation to be able to maintain subsidy.”
This is just as the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, reiterated that the government was working on introducing measures that would cushion the impact of fuel subsidy on vulnerable Nigerians.
Speaking further, the Hernandez, in the report, urged Nigeria to remove subsidy on petroleum motor spirit (PMS) in February 2022, as prescribed by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), warning that further delay could worsen the precarious revenue situation confronting the country.
The report also warned that the present fiscal condition of the sub-national governments would take a turn for the worse in 2022 with 35 of the 36 states unable to meet their financial obligations.
Hernandez stated that a situation where N250 billion goes into fuel subsidy monthly was unsustainable as the paucity of revenue confronts the country, especially the sub-national governments.
The beneficiary of this subsidy are not the poor but the cabals,cant they be fish out& be brought to book? removing subsidy at a time when nothing is in good shape will be disastrous.May God bless Nigeria.