Bayo Onanuga, the special adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy has said Nigeria has been enjoying relatively low prices of fuel due to the state-owned oil generosity.
Onanuga made this known in a statement made available on social media X on Tuesday, debunking claims of return of fuel subsidy.
He said the “commendable disposition” of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited has seen the government absorb the rising costs of petrol at the pump and protect the Nigerian consumer.
Read also: https://businessday.ng/news/article/tinubus-petrol-subsidy-gulps-n15trn-as-scarcity-worsens/
“That generous disposition by NNPC Limited, backed by a compassionate president unwilling to let the people suffer, has been under threat for months, because of the rising cost of crude and the devalued Naira,” the presidency said.
The president’s spokesman said the NNPC “cried out” recently because it can no longer sustain the price differential on its balance sheet without becoming insolvent.
He added that the situation has greater implications for the ability of the three tiers of government to function as the NNPC has failed to pay into the Federation Account, the money that should go to the government.
Onanuga reiterated that the Tinubu-led administration has been sincere with ending the subsidy regime that has made the government direct funds into developing the economy into subsidy payments of N400 billion monthly.
Read also: Passengers lament as NNPC adjusts fuel price to N855
“The government has been faithful to its policy that it was no longer going to pay fuel subsidies since President Tinubu announced the deregulation of the PMS sector on 29 May 2023,” Onanuga said.
“Since then, subsidy provisions have disappeared from the budget. It was not in the Supplementary budget of 2023, not in the 2024 budget and the amended 2024 budget,” he added.
BusinessDay had reported that President Tinubu’s administration has so far spent N15. 096 trillion on petrol subsidy in the last 14 months, having announced an end to the unsustainable venture.
The value of the subsidy expenditure, according to the report, was obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data and information from petroleum marketers.
In the August 21 report, independent marketers said the landing cost of petrol and other logistics costs stand at N1,203 per litre. The NNPC Retail sells petrol at N650 per litre at its stations, leading to a differential of N553 for each litre of petrol.
Meanwhile, the presidency has for the umpteenth time denied a return of the gasoline subsidy regime with Onanuga saying the state-owned oil company can no longer keep up with its “generous disposition”.
Onanuga however stated that the kick off of the Dangote refinery may be the “game changer and big relief giver” which will become the fuel suppliers to the local market.
“When Dangote Refinery and other refineries, including government owned Port Harcourt Refinery, come fully on stream, our country and economy will benefit on all fronts.
“There will be many good paying jobs that will be created along the value-chain. There will also be a drop in the huge demand for foreign exchange to import petroleum products,” he said.
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