Former Presidential Spokesperson, Dr. Doyin Okupe, on Tuesday, disagreed with Alhaji Aliko Dangote’s call for the total removal of fuel subsidy.
Okupe shared his views during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, in Lagos.
This follows Dangote’s recent statement, in which the billionaire businessman, who owns a 650,000 barrels-per-day oil refinery in Lagos, urged the Federal Government to eliminate fuel subsidies. In an interview with Bloomberg on Monday in New York, Dangote stated that the subsidy had cost Nigeria trillions of naira and that now was the right time to put an end to it.
Reacting, Okupe said: “With utmost respect, I disagree with Aliko Dangote on his suggestion that the government should completely end subsidy now.
“Petrol is the economic oxygen of Nigerians, whether rich or poor. This is not the situation in other countries of the world.”
The former Director-General of Peter Obi’s Presidential Campaign said that with the coming up of local refineries, some level of succour should be given to Nigerians.
“We can use opportunities that these local refineries avail us, ensuring adequate fuel supply with the dedicated or allocated daily crude oil for local consumption, which is outside OPEC quota.
“So, whatever we do with it is our internal affairs, it is a way of providing some level of comfort.
“We can sell this daily crude oil allocation for local consumption cheaply to determine the average pump price of PMS (Premium Motor Spirit) in the country.
Okupe described President Bola Tinubu administration’s bold step on fuel subsidy as excellent and commendable.
He said that the President had done a great job by courageously removing subsidies and eliminating multiple exchange rates.
According to him, the President’s reforms have taken root in the economic system.
“It is something very brave that no other previous administrations have dared to go through it.
“What the President did was actively like biting the bullets and he has been courageous enough to persevere and persist through it.
“Having done it for more than a year, my feeling and belief is that we have made enough gains, and because these refineries are upstream, we can consolidate on those gains and release the pressure on the masses a little bit.
“Fortune has played in our hands by the coming upstream of the Dangote refinery, Port Harcourt refinery and other refineries that will follow,” he said.