Rights activist Femi Falana has insisted that the administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu was forced by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, IMF, to withdrawal fuel subsidy, saying the decision was not an economic exigency.
Recall that President Tinubu had on his inauguration on May 29, 2023 announced the removal of petrol subsidy saying “fuel subsidy is gone” amidst controversy that the action will bring untold hardship to Nigerians.
The human rights activist and lawyer made the remark on Sunday on Channels Television programme , Politic Today, saying what the Nigerian government did was an error because no country in the world has ever removed subsidy totally on essential commodity such as fuel.
He cited developed countries such as the United states, United Kingdom, France and others where the government have retained subsidies on essential commodities because of their benefits to their people.
According to him, the policy was imposed on the country by the Brenton wood-based financial institutions as a condition for receiving support from them, but not a few Nigerians insist that the removal was not in their interest considering its effect on the economy.
Falana: “There’s no way you can remove subsidies completely; no country in the entire world has abolished subsidies completely.
“Even leading Western countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, France and others subsidise electricity, agriculture and many aspects of people’s lives.
“As a matter of fact, if I must say this, it was the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that insisted that the government must remove all subsidies.”
The magazine reports that many Nigerians have faced untold hardship since the removal almost two years ago, even though the government said the action was in the interest of the country.
For instance, the Tinubu administration contend that the removal of subsidy from fuel has freed -up more funds for the three tiers of government to spend on critical social projects.
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