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FUEL SUBSIDY AND PRICE CONTROL- SOLUTION TO ECONOMIC HARDSHIP IN NIGERIA
FUEL SUBSIDY AND PRICE CONTROL- SOLUTION TO ECONOMIC HARDSHIP IN NIGERIA
By: Victor Emejuiwe
No sane government should watch its citizens suffer untold hardship and live in poverty. The primary responsibility of government is to protect the life’s and to secure the welfare of the people. President Ahmed Bola Tinubu spontaneously announced the removal of fuel subsidy on the day of its inauguration without considering the attendant consequences of such a decision. In fairness to the removal, the amount of money claimed to be payment of subsidy in Nigeria was quite humongous from N300 billion during the Good Luck Jonathan administration in 2012, to N2.7 trillion in 2022. However, beyond the doubt as to the authenticity of the real value paid on subsidy, the secrecy and corruption associated with the entire subsidy regime was very un-palatable. It was as a result of this, that many Nigerians canvassed for the removal of subsidy. Nevertheless, there are some other school of thought who believes that the government was not sincere on its own part due to the lack of transparency and accountability in petrol consumption and subsidy payment. Also, even where several reports indicting subsidy saboteurs were released, the federal government did nothing to investigate and prosecute those who were accused of corruptly enriching themselves from the subsidy payments. Therefore, the payment of subsidy on its own was not the problem but the willingness of government to come clean with its transaction on subsidy payment and muster the political will to pervert corruption amongst the stakeholders was the major problem. The view on re-introduction of subsidy becomes necessary given the fact that payment of subsidy is a common global practice by governments all over the world. It is taken to ameliorate hardship faced by majority of citizens in the purchase of very expensive commodities. In this case, Nigeria being a mono-economy driven by sales of crude oil, has made the price of every other commodities reflective in the rise or fall in the price of crude oil. The subsidy regime cushioned a lot of hardship amongst Nigerian in the past and with its removal today, Nigerians have not been able to recover from the effect, as we can witness the continuous increase in the prices of all commodities in Nigeria. Most workers do not report to work on a daily basis, some business closed shops and the general standard of living has reduced. Couple with this fact, is government inactiveness in controlling the hike in the prices of locally produced commodities. The lack of a price stabilization and mechanization control which was hitherto implemented in the 70’s have made it possible for middle men to determine the prices of commodities in the market. The practice of the middle men is to acquire these goods from the dealers and hoard them so as to create scarcity and speculate a market price before they sell, with wide profit margin. If government enforce the price control Act as ordered recently by the federal high court on goods and commodities that are locally produced in Nigeria, the hoarders and speculators would run out of business and food items and other commodities would be available at the normal rate. The lack of a price control mechanism is what led to the failure of most government policies on agriculture. It is so unfortunate that the past government of President Muhammed Buhari, made efforts to encourage local production of food commodities such as rice and even provided subsidies to farmers to embark on local rice production, but instead of having the price of rice reduced, it rather led to more than 200 percent increase in the price of rice. Rice which was sold for N9600 before the ban on imported rice, skyrocket to N19,800, at a point, it rose to N36,000 and the government could not do anything to stop the hike. Under this present administration, a bag of rice sells for N77,000. It is an anomaly for government to provide incentives to local producers of commodities and at the same time, do not have control of the market price.
In light of the above, in the interim, the Federal Government should re-introduce subsidy on petrol and diesel under a more transparent regime and deal with saboteurs who divert the products to other countries and in the long run, the Federal government should get our refineries working at optimum capacity so that any attempt to remove subsidy on petrol and diesel will not have much impact on the price on petrol. Also, a list of commodities and items produced locally should be established and the market price should be determined under a price control, stabilization and mechanization regime. The government should enforce the laws and policy on price control. Finally, for resource mobilization, the government should stop oil theft so that more resources can be generated from crude oil and this would help us pay for the subsidy on petrol and also pay for the functionality of our refineries.
*Victor Emejuiwe
Monitoring and Evaluation/Strategic Communication Manager
Centre for Social Justice.
Abuja
08068262366
FUEL SUBSIDY AND PRICE CONTROL- SOLUTION TO ECONOMIC HARDSHIP IN NIGERIA
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NEDC finance director takes development to improve living conditions of people in Yobe
NEDC finance director takes development to improve living conditions of people in Yobe.
By: Yahaya Wakili
The Director of Finance and Admin. of the North East Development Commission (NEDC), Dr. Abubakar Garba Illiya, PhD, FMNG, has made numerous achievements in providing infrastructure facilities to improve the living conditions for the people of Yobe State since he was appointed to that position

The developmental projects provided by Dr. Garba Illiya include the construction and rehabilitation of schools, primary healthcare centers, and water supply in both rural and urban areas with a view to improving the livelihoods of the people of Yobe State.
Dr. Abubakar Garba Illiya, PhD, FMNG, also constructed and rehabilitated numerous rural roads in some local government areas across the state to facilitate the movement of goods and services.
However, Dr. Illiya also accords the same commitment to the schools by procurement of instructional materials as well as construction and rehabilitation of schools destroyed by Boko Haram insurgency across the northeast region.
“Dr. Illiya’s intervention, the NEDC, has contributed tremendously to increasing food sufficiency and food security in Yobe State and the North East by procuring farm inputs and implements as well as providing enough fertilizers and tractors to farmers.

He also assisted youths and women with the capital for business with empowerment initiated for self-employment and also distributed foodstuffs and other humanitarian assistance to Internal Displaced Persons (IDPs) affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in the region.
Dr. Abubakar Garba Illiya further sent youths for training in different categories, like training in phone repairs, welding, tailoring, carpentry, and others, to be self-reliant and assisted them with take-off funds for capital businesses.
He made all these achievements with a view to improving the lives of the peoples of Yobe State and the northeast region after recovery from the Boko Haram insurgency destruction.
NEDC finance director takes development to improve living conditions of people in Yobe
News
Police neutralise three bandits in Benue , rescue senator after attack on convoy
Police neutralise three bandits in Benue , rescue senator after attack on convoy
By: Zagazola Makama
The Police in Benue says have neutralised three suspected bandits during a gun battle following the killing of a 67-year-old man in Katsina-Ala Local Government Area of the state.
Security sources said the incident occurred on March 7 at about 7:30 p.m., when armed bandits loyal to a local kingpin identified as “Chen” had abducted one Zaki Sughter Agenbeer, 67, from his residence in Une Tongov community.
The attackers reportedly took the victim into the bush and killed him after accusing him of providing information about their activities to security agencies.
The DPO Katsina-Ala, in collaboration with the DPO Ukum, subsequently mobilised patrol teams and tactical units to the area. Police operatives later engaged the bandits in a gun duel during which three of the suspects were neutralised.
The corpse of the slain victim was recovered and deposited at the Zaki Ibiam Hospital mortuary, while security operatives have commenced a combing operation in nearby bushes to track down other fleeing suspects.
Meanwhile, the police also confirmed an attack on the convoy of Sen. Udende Emmanuel, representing Benue North-East Senatorial District, during a visit to Tsua town in Vandekiya Local Government Area for a church service.
Sources said some youths from Vandekiya allegedly attacked the senator’s convoy and damaged one of the vehicles.
The Divisional Police Officer in Vandekiya quickly mobilised to the scene and successfully rescued the senator from the situation.
In a related development, some youths also disrupted a thanksgiving service at Tsemke Church in Vandekiya, destroying plastic chairs before police intervened.
Police authorities said the swift deployment of operatives helped to de-escalate the tension and restore normalcy in the area.
Additional patrol and tactical teams have been deployed to Vandekiya to ensure law and order and facilitate the arrest of those responsible for the disturbances.
The State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) has commenced investigations into both incidents.
Police said the general security situation across Benue State remains relatively calm, while security agencies continue monitoring developments.
Police neutralise three bandits in Benue , rescue senator after attack on convoy
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Heavy gun battle in Kukawa in Borno leaves casualties on both sides, arms recovered from camp
Heavy gun battle in Kukawa in Borno leaves casualties on both sides, arms recovered from camp
By: Zagazola Makama
A heavy gun battle between troops and suspected fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State has resulted in casualties on both sides, security sources said on Monday.
The clash occurred when insurgents reportedly attacked a military camp, prompting troops to engage in a prolonged firefight. Security operatives said exploitation of the camp is still ongoing.
According to sources, items recovered from the insurgents’ positions within the camp include bandoliers of PKT rounds, one AK-47 rifle, one BHT machine gun, two mortar bombs, and four hand grenades.
Sources noted blood stains and drags outside the camp, suggesting insurgent casualties during the encounter.
In a related development, troops reportedly intercepted an injured BHT fighter in the community who was being brought to the camp. The suspect attempted to escape, prompting additional gunfire, the sources said.
Sources said the situation remains under control, with troops continuing to secure the area and conduct follow-up operations to track remaining insurgents.
Further updates on casualties and operational outcomes are expected as clearance operations continue in the theatre of operations.
Heavy gun battle in Kukawa in Borno leaves casualties on both sides, arms recovered from camp
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