TRAGEDY: SUBSIDY REMOVAL!
As we all know, Nigeria has been a country of paradoxes. It is a country abundantly blessed with natural and human resources, with a population estimated at about 16o million. Nigeria is the largest country in Africa and one- sixth of the black population in the world. It is the 8th largest oil producer and has the 6th largest deposit of natural gas in the World and yet federal government in collaboration with Petroleum Price Regulatory Agency, go ahead and remove subsidy on fuel. What a tragedy? It is the duty of every responsible government to make the provision of basic amenities it’s citizen and in a situation where the people are facing harsh economic condition, it is the same government that should introduce policies aimed at cushioning there Negative tendencies.
The issue of fuel subsidy has become a sort of salvation to the masses, when president Goodluck Jonathan is campaigning for April poll, he promised Nigerians “ fresh air” and “transformation in some sectors of economy” while Gen. Buhari of CPC shed tears for the masses in Abuja during his own campaign,because he acknowledged the kind of hardship that is confronting the masses. Mr president after been sworn in forgotten all they promises he made to the people that elected him, but only care for what pleased him and his party members who are encouraging him to remove subsidy on fuel. Well, in a Hausa saying “ Do not rejoice at the misfortunes of others”.
The massive protest with the slogan of “Anti fuel subsidy Removal” in Bauchi, Kano, Illorin, and Lagos to name but a few cities in the federation, clearly connote a tragedy, in the sense that average living Nigerian who buy fuel at the price of N65 per liter and now N143 per liter, in some filling stations is even N200 per liter, Which brought about transportation cost to skyrocket. For example traveling from Jos – Sokoto cost N4500 which before is N2800, Jos – Abuja is N1500, which before is N1000. Movement within Jos metropolis with commercial motorcycles is N100 per drop and even above. In some markets there were no food items, because the food distributors hold on to see how the subsidy issue is going to end, because if they transport their products from one state to another, they would not make any profits.
Nigerian Labour Congress and Trade Union Council have decided to embark in nation wide strike and protest against subsidy removal, which definitely economic and other social activities would be barricated. Therefore, the whole nation would look dry and dull, although ”whenever two elephants are fighting, the grass suffers”. I pity the proletarian which majority of them go out to search for what they would eat for that day and they would be obstructed by protest and strike hmm! I begin to wonder how we are going to make progress, where is the transformation? where is the fresh air?
Nigerian government have to diversify it economy because over dependence on natural resources specifically petroleum sector, is also part of the obstacle that lead to the scenario we are in now. God has already done favour to us for giving us fertile land to plant any thing on earth. We hear of how Malaysia got her first palm seedlings from Nigeria in the early 1960s when oil produce was already a major export of Nigeria in the 1990s, it was said that Malaysia export of palm oil produce earned more than Nigeria earned from oil export, what an irony!
More grease to the elbow of NLC and other fellow compatriots who are willing and able to ensure justice is done to the majority of Nigerians.
