Victor EzejaEconomic expert and CEO of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) Dr Muda Yusuf, has called on the Nigerian government to prioritise the need to address core issues currently affecting the citizens as a result of the removal of subsidies on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol.
Labour unions on Wednesday, August 02, 2023, embarked on a nationwide protest against the harsh economic realities caused by the removal of subsidies on petrol.
Dr Yusuf, who appeared on Channels Television Sunrise Daily programme on Wednesday, said the government needs to accelerate engagement with labour unions and other critical stakeholders to address the needs of Nigerians affected by the subsidy removal.
Speaking on the nationwide protest by organised labour, the CPPE CEO expressed the need to ensure that the protest does not linger and is not high-jacked by hoodlums.
He said since the labour unions did not specify the number of days the protest would last, allowing it to linger for days may be risky and disrupt business activities, especially for SME operators who depend on daily hustles for their daily incomes.
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He said that making it short and peaceful would be good for the interest of the citizens, whom the labour unions are fighting for their welfare, adding that it would not diminish the effect of the message that labour is trying to put forward.
While acknowledging that the economic measures rolled out so far by President Tinubu as reflected in his July 31 nationwide address, are for the long term, Yusuf said the government need to expand its scope of engagement in line with the issues raised by labour, adding that it would help a great deal in resolving the present challenges.
He said that in as much as the government has come up with some financing schemes to stimulate economic activities, it should also prioritise the immediate needs of the people by addressing the rising costs of energy, food, and transportation among others.
He noted that all over the world, governments give subsidies in various areas, but ought to be in productive ventures and also targeted at protecting the interest of the vulnerable segments of society, and not what has been witnessed in Nigeria in the petrol subsidy scheme.
He urged the government to look into rolling out subsidies in the areas of healthcare, energy, transport, education and agriculture.
“All over the world, governments give subsidies. So, the subsidy itself is not a bad thing. What is bad is our own version of subsidy which of cause, we all know the kind of damage it has done to the economy. So, we can go back and refine that and come up with other forms of subsidies in the area of energy, transportation, health, education and food,” Yusuf said.
On the proposal to disburse money as palliatives to what the government called “poor Nigerian households,” the former director general of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), said the government should adopt a more sustainable way of doing it, adding that giving out money to people is not always the best in mitigating economic hardship.
“In addition to what the president has said, he should be looking in the direction of policies on tax incentives, tax breaks, fiscal policy incentives, and tariff incentives.”
“We need to accelerate the process of engagement with labour unions and other critical stakeholders. We need to prioritise the key pain points that Nigerians are worried about – the high cost of food, energy and transportation,” the economic expert stressed.
He also urged the government to partner with stakeholders in the private sector to support in resolving the challenges.
Also, speaking on the programme, former deputy president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Amaechi Asugwuni said any palliative put in place by the government that does not consider fixing the refineries to boost domestic production of oil will not work.
Asugwuni said organised labour had prior to the removal of subsidy on petrol, recommended a number of measures to the federal government which include fixing the existing refineries and setting other ones to resume production of petroleum products locally.
He stated that nothing in President Tinubu’s nationwide address on July 31 suggests any attempt by the Federal Government to address the issue of fixing the refineries.
According to him, fixing the refineries to boost production in-country is the only effective way to bring down the cost of petroleum products in Nigeria.
He explained that the decision to embark on the nationwide protest by organised labour was because nothing significant seems to be coming out of the ongoing negotiations between the Federal Government and the labour unions.
Asugwuni said labour leaders can’t afford to continue being silent as that could be interpreted by their members to mean accepting defeat.
He added that the exercise is in the interest of the entire citizens who are suffering the effect of rising costs of things as a result of hike in pump price of petrol due to subsidy removal.
“NLC believes that subsidies should be removed on the condition that refineries should work in Nigeria, not at the expense of importation,” former deputy NLC president said.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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