The heat is on. The picture they are now seeing doesn't seem to correspond with their expectations. As a result, members of the presidency has gotten a clear directive to engage the legislative arm of government and possibly secure their support for the planned removal of fuel subsidy next year without necessarily meeting the demands of Nigerians as represented by Labour, civil society organisations and other pressure groups.
To show how serious the heat has become, from far away...
Perth, Australia, President Goodluck Jonathan directed Presidency officials as well as those of the Ministries of Petroleum and Finance to reach out to members of the National Assembly to convince them of the need to support the plan to remove fuel subsidy.
The presidential directive, according to sources, was passed to the affected officials while the President was still attending the Commonwealth Heads of Governments Meeting. The President is due back in the country on Monday.
A source in the Presidency said, “In the coming weeks, you will see more meetings between the executive and the National Assembly. We intend to bring all facts to justify our demand for the removal of the fuel subsidy. This is a democracy, without the support of the lawmakers, the plan will fail.”
In the Medium Term Expenditure Framework submitted to the Senate on October 4, 2011, President jonathan had said his government would save N1.2trn from the fuel subsidy removal that is to commence in January 2012. According to him, the money will be spent on providing ‘safety nets’ for the poor.
Following the criticisms of the plan by majority of Nigerians, the President and the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had on October 10 met with the leadership of the National Assembly at the Presidential Villa to seek their support.
Following the criticisms of the plan by majority of Nigerians, the President and the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had on October 10 met with the leadership of the National Assembly at the Presidential Villa to seek their support.
But it seems the leadership of the National Assembly alone cannot perform the 'magic', hence the decision to consult wide. “I cannot say for now what the position of the National Assembly is, and the decision on that will be taken when the budget is presented and debated on the floor,” the Senate Spokesman, Enyinnaya Abaribe, told journalists after the meeting.
Last week Friday, the Minister of labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu, met with the members of the Senate Committee on Employment, Labour and Productivity where he also sought their support for the policy.
In his words: “We seek your support in the direction of deregulation policy, and believe that what will accrue to the Federal Government from the removal of fuel subsidy will be judiciously used as well as monitored and managed by eminent Nigerians who are well respected in the society.”
So far, the anti-subsidy campaigners seem to be winning converts by the day with more and more Nigerians speaking up against what they've termed an 'anti-people policy'. With the rapidly growing opposition against the removal of subsidy giving the present state of things (refineries, cost of living, etc.) one wonders how much of 'lobby' the presidency would need to change the equation.
