No going back on fuel subsidy removal — Jonathan …Nationwide strike will begin tomorrow — Labour
JANUARY 8, 2012
President Goodluck Jonathan again on Saturday insisted that the controversial deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector was necessary if the nation must move forward.
Jonathan made the submission in a nationwide broadcast on the issue that has attracted protests across the country.
He said if he were in the shoes of ordinary Nigerians, he would have reacted negatively to the deregulation as many were doing.
He said, “Since the announcement, there have been mixed reactions to the policy. Let me seize this opportunity to assure all Nigerians that I feel the pain that you all feel. I personally feel pained to see the sharp increase in transport fares and the prices of goods and services.
“I share the anguish of all persons who had travelled out of their stations who had to pay more on the return leg of their journeys.”
He recalled that previous administrations had tinkered with the pump price of petroleum products and were unable to effect complete deregulation of the downstream sector.
This, he explained, was why the issue of deregulation kept recurring in the nation.
The President said although deregulation was not a magic formula that would address every economic challenge, it provided a good entry point for transforming the economy, and for ensuring transparency and competitiveness in the oil industry, which is the mainstay of the nation’s economy.
Apart from deregulation, Jonathan said his government was taking other steps to further sanitise the oil industry.
To ensure that the funds from petroleum subsidy removal are spent prudently on projects that will ensure the development of the country, he said he had established a committee to oversee the implementation of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme.
He further announced that the basic salaries of all political office-holders in the executive arm of government would be reduced by 25 per cent in 2012 and that there would also be a reduction of overseas travels.
Jonathan also urged youths not to allow mischief-makers to exploit present circumstances to mislead or incite them to disturb public peace and urged all Nigerians to eschew bitterness and acrimony and live together in harmony and peace.
In a swift reaction to the president’s speech, the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress said the broadcast changed nothing and that the indefinite strikes, rallies and mass protests scheduled to commence nationwide on Monday would go on.
In a press statement signed by NLC’s Acting General Secretary, Owei Lakemfa and TUC’s Secretary General, John Kolawole, labour said the President’s broadcast was due to the resistance of Nigerians to the increase in petrol prices and the planned strike.
They said, “The President’s address follows the pattern of other documents by his administration; long in rhetorics and short on basic issues.
“For instance, the major anchor of the broadcast is that salaries of political office-holders are to be cut by 25 per cent. But he failed to tell us how much this will amount to. Is this a mere symbolic gesture or a fundamental contribution to economic recovery?
“He also talked about his administration holding meetings with transporters to reduce fares. We see this as a populist statement that has no foundation in reality. If a transporter who used to buy petrol at N65 per litre now buys it between N141 and N220, what appeal can be made to him not to increase his fares by a high percentage? How do you ‘deregulate’ the economy and hope to regulate transport fares by private operators?”
The unions added that the President should have reversed the price of PMS to N65 which would have automatically reduced rising tension in the country.
They said, “The President also promised the completion of rail lines and infusion of buses in to the transport system. It is like putting the cart before the horse; these measures should have been put in place before the astronomical increase in petrol price.
“We reiterate that Nigerians cannot afford the high fuel prices and will not accept the hyperinflation this misguided policy has created.
“Jonathan lost a great opportunity in his broadcast by sticking to his guns; that the unreasonable increase in fuel prices will remain.
“The Labour Movement and its allies on behalf of the Nigerian populace reiterate that the broadcast has changed nothing and that the indefinite strikes will go on.”
President Goodluck Jonathan again on Saturday insisted that the controversial deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector was necessary if the nation must move forward.
Jonathan made the submission in a nationwide broadcast on the issue that has attracted protests across the country.
He said if he were in the shoes of ordinary Nigerians, he would have reacted negatively to the deregulation as many were doing.
He said, “Since the announcement, there have been mixed reactions to the policy. Let me seize this opportunity to assure all Nigerians that I feel the pain that you all feel. I personally feel pained to see the sharp increase in transport fares and the prices of goods and services.
“I share the anguish of all persons who had travelled out of their stations who had to pay more on the return leg of their journeys.”
He recalled that previous administrations had tinkered with the pump price of petroleum products and were unable to effect complete deregulation of the downstream sector.
This, he explained, was why the issue of deregulation kept recurring in the nation.
The President said although deregulation was not a magic formula that would address every economic challenge, it provided a good entry point for transforming the economy, and for ensuring transparency and competitiveness in the oil industry, which is the mainstay of the nation’s economy.
Apart from deregulation, Jonathan said his government was taking other steps to further sanitise the oil industry.
To ensure that the funds from petroleum subsidy removal are spent prudently on projects that will ensure the development of the country, he said he had established a committee to oversee the implementation of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme.
He further announced that the basic salaries of all political office-holders in the executive arm of government would be reduced by 25 per cent in 2012 and that there would also be a reduction of overseas travels.
Jonathan also urged youths not to allow mischief-makers to exploit present circumstances to mislead or incite them to disturb public peace and urged all Nigerians to eschew bitterness and acrimony and live together in harmony and peace.
In a swift reaction to the president’s speech, the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress said the broadcast changed nothing and that the indefinite strikes, rallies and mass protests scheduled to commence nationwide on Monday would go on.
In a press statement signed by NLC’s Acting General Secretary, Owei Lakemfa and TUC’s Secretary General, John Kolawole, labour said the President’s broadcast was due to the resistance of Nigerians to the increase in petrol prices and the planned strike.
They said, “The President’s address follows the pattern of other documents by his administration; long in rhetorics and short on basic issues.
“For instance, the major anchor of the broadcast is that salaries of political office-holders are to be cut by 25 per cent. But he failed to tell us how much this will amount to. Is this a mere symbolic gesture or a fundamental contribution to economic recovery?
“He also talked about his administration holding meetings with transporters to reduce fares. We see this as a populist statement that has no foundation in reality. If a transporter who used to buy petrol at N65 per litre now buys it between N141 and N220, what appeal can be made to him not to increase his fares by a high percentage? How do you ‘deregulate’ the economy and hope to regulate transport fares by private operators?”
The unions added that the President should have reversed the price of PMS to N65 which would have automatically reduced rising tension in the country.
They said, “The President also promised the completion of rail lines and infusion of buses in to the transport system. It is like putting the cart before the horse; these measures should have been put in place before the astronomical increase in petrol price.
“We reiterate that Nigerians cannot afford the high fuel prices and will not accept the hyperinflation this misguided policy has created.
“Jonathan lost a great opportunity in his broadcast by sticking to his guns; that the unreasonable increase in fuel prices will remain.
“The Labour Movement and its allies on behalf of the Nigerian populace reiterate that the broadcast has changed nothing and that the indefinite strikes will go on.”
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