Former Senate President Laments N2.5trn Petrol Subsidy

By James Orji

Bukola Saraki, a former Senate President has bemoaned the recent petrol scarcity in the country blaming insincerity on the part of the federal government for the problem.

Saraki said the whopping N2.5 trillion earmarked for fuel subsidy in this year’s budget is over-bloated, amidst effort on the part of the government to make petrol available across the country.

Due to the unavailability of the product, the price rose to as high as N300 per litre from N165 per litre much to the criticism of many Nigerians on the failure of the authority to arrest the problem.

The senator spoke following President Muhammadu Buhari request to the National Assembly to amend the 2022 Budget to accommodate the amount.

But the former Senate President said the country may be subsidizing petrol for neighbouring countries who he said are the major beneficiary,  noting that fuel consumption in the country should not be more than 35 million litres daily rather than the 70 million claimed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.

He said the fuel subsidy regime is riddled with financial racket calling on the Buhari’s administration to arrest the situation.

Recall that NNPC managing Director, Mele Kyari had in May 2021 steered controversy after he claimed that the country consumed over 100 million litres per day in June of that year.

Kyari had told the House of representative Committee on Finance that Nigeria “consumed up to 103 million litres per day, I don’t know. Actually, I flagged this when I saw the figure. It is actually from me in a public fora three days ago and I still remember, I said that, we see evacuation of 103 million litres.

“Evacuation is not consumption, but it is very very abnormal. Even the average for that month comes back to 62. So, I found it very very strange that, we can have that high number and we are investigating it. And I am sure we are going to get to the bottom of it.

“We looked at the capacities of all the depots in the country to see is it really practical? We have depots that have no capacity to do this and we see these high numbers.

“I have taken this. I can say it openly here, I have taken this matter to all the agencies of government, like the EFCC and ICPC so that, they can follow up on it. So, we looked at it as an abnormal practice that has happened”.

According to Saraki, “we cannot be consuming more than 30 million to 40 million litres and it is obvious there is racketeering in the oil sector. Some people are benefitting and there is no way we are consuming 70 million litres. We are in a problem because a few people are benefiting but the politicians are fixated on the 2023 elections.

“We must look at what Nigerians are going through and change the way subsidy is being managed; not subsidise other countries.

“The Federal Government is not being fair to the masses and the smuggling of fuel must stop while the true situation of things must be uncovered. It is not about the individual but the federal government must be held accountable. We must subsidise the actual consumption in the country”.