THUR AUG 22 2024-theGBJournal|Agora Policy, a Nigerian think tank, reckons that petrol subsidy is not only back but bigger than prior era, in its latest take on the albatross.
According to Agora Policy, a Nigerian think tank committed to finding practical solutions to urgent national challenges, full figure for 2023 stood at N5.10 trillion, almost double the record set in 2022. With N4.2 trillion incurred in just seven months, 2024 is set for an all-time record.
Agora Policy says out of N20.73 trillion incurred on petrol subsidy from January 2006 to July 2024, the year 2023 accounted for 25.04% of the total, while seven months in 2024 alone is responsible for 20.67% of the total. By contrast, 16 year or 86% of the period accounted just 40% of total subsidy.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu announced, in his inaugural address on May 29 2023, that ”the fuel subsidy is gone.”
”The subsidy can no longer justify its ever-increasing costs in the wake of drying resources,” the President said.
Government spending on subsidy before the announcement was estimated at about N400 billion monthly, according to NNPCL boss Mele Kyari.
The announcement prompted an unprecedent spike in the pump price of petrol, and began an era of endless petrol queues across the country.
Speculations has trailed the queues since its emergence with state oil company, NNPC Limited offering no credible reason{s) for the queues.
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