A former Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, has said that former President Muhammadu Buhari retained petrol subsidy to prevent hardship among Nigerians.

In an interview on Arise TV on Monday, Nwajiuba indicated that the former president made notable contributions to Nigeria’s development, and he emphasised that data from Buhari's eight-year tenure underscores his efforts.

“All the figures from every known publication in the eight years are clear. This is an economy that recovered from recession twice. This is an economy that ran into COVID. This is an economy that he did exceedingly well in economic terms,” the ex-minister said.

“We held the dollar at the exchange rate… we held it at the time he left, at less than N500. He held subsidy so that Nigerians won’t die.

“The number of deaths in the last two years alone has exceeded the number that voted. I mean, just from tankers falling and people being burnt, people going for Christmas gifts, people going to look for food, and they die from it.

“He knew, and he granted an interview to BBC why he wanted to defend Nigerians ahead of others.”

Nwajiuba cited a Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) data showing 183 companies closed in two years, contrasting with stability under Buhari. He said Buhari’s administration made progress in mining, non-oil exports, and oil production.

“He did this work, and the numbers are there to show,” he said.

“Everything we did in mining, the improvements in non-oil exports, improvements in oil exports, the idea behind condensates, everything that we did in government, are all articulated.”

ASA