JUST IN: Tinubu Speaks On Fuel Subsidy Weeks After Announcing Removal

JUST IN: Tinubu Speaks On Fuel Subsidy Weeks After Announcing Removal

President Bola Tinubu on Friday described fuel subsidy as a “scam” and disincentive to growth, saying it rewarded smugglers and reduced the burden of the “real cost” of the commodity for some countries.

Tinubu made the assertion during a meeting with members of the Nigerian community in France, said a statement by his Special Adviser on Special Duties, Communication and Strategy, Dele Alake, later that day.

Addressing Nigerians in France, Tinubu explained that the Special Adviser on Monetary Policy, Wale Edun and Alake had excluded fuel subsidy removal from his inaugural speech, “but he felt it was expedient to stop the subsidy on the first day”.

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President Bola Tinubu meets with Nigerians in Paris, France on Friday, June 23, 2023. Photo: State House

This marked the first time the President would publicly comment on his May 29 inaugural speech, in which he declared that “fuel subsidy is gone”.

The comment sparked a near-instant hike in prices and hoarding, leading to calls for protests by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). This is despite former President Muhammadu Buhari’s early moves to end the payment of fuel subsidy by June.

The President promised to reposition the education and health sectors, adding that ongoing reforms on the economy would be sustained and expanded, with a view to relieving families struggling with the burden of poverty and insecurity.

The remarks come 11 days after the President signed the Students Loan Bill into law.