‘Nigeria Would Have Gone Bankrupt’ — Tinubu Defends Fuel Subsidy Removal

President Bola Tinubu has justified the removal of the fuel subsidy, saying the policy saved Nigeria from bankruptcy and fiscal collapse.

The President made the remarks while hosting state governors at a meeting in Ikoyi, Lagos, where he defended his administration’s economic reforms three years after taking office.

“It was challenging at the time, but we survived. We faced litigation and accusations. We survived them. Instead of bankruptcy, Nigeria has survived,” Tinubu told the governors.

The President said the reforms were beginning to yield results, pointing to growth in agriculture, ongoing infrastructure projects across the country, and the fact that states no longer borrow to pay salaries.

Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, as well as Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma, who chairs the Progressives Governors’ Forum (PGF), both expressed support for the reforms. Uzodinma scored the administration 100 per cent on its economic policies.

The subsidy removal, implemented in May 2023, saw the price of petrol rise from about N185 per litre to over N1,500 per litre, triggering a wave of inflation that pushed the cost of food, transport, and other essentials significantly higher.

Critics have accused the administration of inflicting untold hardship on Nigerians, with many calling for a reversal of the policy or targeted palliatives to cushion its impact.

Source: ThisDay, NaijaNews