Fuel Subsidy Removal: Peter Obi reveals his position on Tinubu's decision

Peter Obi, the Labour Party (LP) Presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, has expressed his dissatisfaction with President Bola Tinubu's sudden announcement of fuel subsidy removal.

Obi argued that removing the subsidy without implementing measures to alleviate the resulting hardships was a misguided approach, Nigerian Tribune reported.

Legit.ng gathers that the former governor of Anambra state made the statement during a media chat on the sidelines of the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) in Abuja.

Obi suggested that if he were involved in the decision-making process, he would have advocated for the removal of fuel subsidy with certain conditions and supported it with empirical statistical data.

He emphasised the need to demonstrate how much would be saved from subsidy removal, where those savings would be allocated, and the overall benefits for the people.

Making reference to his own campaign promises, Obi stressed his commitment to govern the people of Nigeria with transparency and by presenting empirically verifiable facts on how the country can improve when those facts are followed.

“There is a difference between removing your tooth by applying artificial which will ameliorate your pain than just putting it out.

“I believe it (fuel subsidy) should be removed with conditions and that (conditions) must be applied. If I was involved, I would have shown empirical statistical data, how much we are going to save from it (subsidy), where we are going to apply it, the gains for the people,” he stated.

In a recent declaration, President Bola Tinubu announced his intention to remove fuel subsidy starting from July 1, 2023.

He emphasised that his government would not allocate funds to subsidize the product, citing its exclusion from the 2023 budget by the previous administration.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) have announced the suspension of the scheduled nationwide industrial action against the federal government's removal of the petrol subsidy.

The organised Labour disclosed their resolution following a closed-door meeting with the federal government representatives on Monday night, June 5.