President Bola Tinubu has announced that the federal government has successfully saved over N1 trillion in just two months since the removal of the petrol subsidy.
This remarkable achievement was revealed during a nationwide broadcast on Monday, where President Tinubu assured Nigerians that the saved revenue would be used for their benefit and the development of the nation.
The decision to remove the petrol subsidy was initially announced by President Tinubu in his inauguration speech on May 29, a move that caused a hike in the price of the product. However, he emphasized that the removal of the subsidy was necessary to address longstanding issues and ensure the funds were better utilized to benefit the citizens.
“In a little over two months, we have saved over a trillion naira that would have been squandered on the unproductive fuel subsidy which only benefitted smugglers and fraudsters. That money will now be used more directly and more beneficially for you and your families,” he said.
During the broadcast, President Tinubu highlighted the detrimental effects of the subsidy system, which had been draining the nation’s finances for years. He revealed that the federal government had been spending trillions of naira annually on petrol subsidies, with the majority of these funds ending up in the hands of smugglers and fraudulent individuals.
“This group had amassed so much wealth and power that they became a serious threat to the fairness of our economy and the integrity of our democratic governance,” the president said.
“To be blunt, Nigeria could never become the society it was intended to be as long as such small, powerful yet unelected groups hold enormous influence over our political economy and the institutions that govern it.
“The whims of the few should never hold dominant sway over the hopes and aspirations of the many. If we are to be a democracy, the people and not the power of money must, be sovereign.
“The preceding administration saw this looming danger as well. Indeed, it made no provision in the 2023 appropriations for subsidy after June this year. Removal of this once-helpful device that had transformed into a millstone around the country’s neck had become inevitable.”
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