Talk about the gift of subsidy removal

      There should be a name for a gift that is given unintentionally, especially when it is supposedly designed to be punitive and then turns out to be in the best interest of the intended recipient. We call such a gift what? Before we begin to beat ourselves up over acute adjectives or names to answer the question to the question, might we not be tempted to consider this gift for clues to a suitable nomenclature?

       On the first day of January 2012, the duly elected government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria perhaps as a result of growing incompetence effected the removal of the oil subsidy in flagrant disregard of due process and indeed the law, much to the disbelief of Nigerians who watched as their government bandied facts, figures, and promises in a bid to solicit support for the policy. The results were predictable but quite unprecedented (at least every sensible Nigerian knew that neither they nor their fellow compatriots were going to take the new policy standing), the only party for which the surprise factor affected was the governments’.  Arguments were made and heard from both sides but it was clear that the govt was always going to lose. If not over the logic of the argument then over the basic fundamental tenet of democracy; that being that democracy is the government of the people, for the people and by the people. The people do not want subsidy removal to be implemented-at least not for now, and they want their government to listen. However if there is anything the Goodluck Ebele govt is good at as previous governments before it; is grandstanding. And this is what puzzles me. For a President that has been touted as humble, listening to heady economics, justifying this said economics and attempting to force down the worst of this economics down our throats irrespective of how we feel about it isn’t humble by any stretch of the imagination.

      For our collective benefit, here is what subsidy means in simple Nigerian terms; it is a corrupt practice whereby our govt pays a group of people certain sums in order to keep the price of fuel at a certain economically viable fixed pump price which until the 1^st of this year was #65 per litre. Why? Because the costs of exporting crude abroad, refining the crude, and importing this said crude back into the country is rather on the high side and if the government doesn’t subsidize, then you and I end up in this position.

      At this point however just why do we call the call this seemingly beneficial practice, corrupt? This is because of the well documented illegality inherent in the process; round tripping, demurrage charges, hoarding and any other criminality you can think of. Given that we have as a nation always have done nothing to battle corruption, we have let this practice continue to the point that it has supposedly become so much of a burden on governance and, our government being the slumbering reactionary that it is has decided to end this practice.

      Then there is the business of just how much of a burden this practice has become. According to the facts that the government is quick to shove at us, subsidy has cost the govt a whooping #1.16 trillion Naira, an excess of 300% of the original budgetary allocation-#280bn for the 2011 fiscal year. (this excess, an illegality in itself.). Thus the govt has proposed that future allocations for subsidy be withdrawn and saved instead. They argue that this sum could be used in other sectors of the economy; they say this money will be invested in healthcare, provision of infrastructure and such and such. They argue that to meet up with vision 2020 and to avoid bankruptcy govt must desist from paying subsidy. Here let me digress: does it not beg the question why #1.16trn and not #280bn? What happened in between? Shipping costs hiked up? And why can’t we sustain payment? Why has it drained government reserves? We have most definitely not been paying these ridiculously inflated sums every other year have we? What kind of economists does the govt employ if they cannot project a sensible estimate even while making allowance for the unforeseen? The ‘’whys’’ are just nonstop!

     It borders on a high degree of idiocy to assume that surpassing the budgetary allocation for the provision of infrastructure with a mere 1.6bn is the instantaneous solution to the lack of it. It would mean that govt would still allocate monies for subsidy to the above said tune of 1.16bn (280bn? Who cares?) but rather invest it elsewhere. Didn’t they for God sakes say this sums are not payable? Oh! Perhaps only payable when we invest this money for infrastructure? Their argument is self defeatist. We bail corporate Nigeria but won’t bail the people? Any government that fails to recognize that the people it represents is its singular responsibility should know that at the demise of the people there won’t be any need for infrastructure. Such govt has failed the people and should shut the hell up, pack the hell up and get out of town.

     But as a Nigerian, the hope is not to see Jonathan fail. His failure at this junction of our nation’s existence becomes the failure of the Nigerian state and that is why the people of the state in harmony with organized Labor have taken to the streets. As I write this article, this is day 5 of a relentless insistence on enforcing the rights of the people, the right to be heard, the right to account-able governance, et al. Consequently the protests have caused the economy an estimated loss of over #320bn per day and judging from the mood of the people, if government continues its grossly unrealistic grandstanding, then we could be talking loses more astronomical. It is perhaps the potential of this bargaining chip that the masses have realized and are very unwilling to give up. As more and more Nigerians become aware of this hardship that is forced upon them, the streets have become battle ground where they chant their dismay. Definitely, it is not rocket science to understand why we see Nigerians out on the streets protesting the removal of what is a cushion effect from day to day economic hardship. With state governments unable to pay the new minimum wage of #18,000 and inflation rates gradually going upwards, costs of the most basic amenities and living, ever so slightly out of the reach of the people the difference in cost of living between government Nigeria and Masses Nigeria is alarming. And it is in this dimension that the true nature of this gift begins to unravel. Social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter-most times via the #OccupyNigeria hash tag, BBM, are fast, reliable, easy tools for the dissemination of information, voicing of grievances etc. And if one were to check carefully if one were so disposed, you would find that the #OccupyNigeria protest isn’t solely about reverting PMS pump price but also getting the root cause of the problem-CORRUPTION in governance. Why haven’t we invested in more refineries before now? The argument of deregulation of the downstream sector away from state participation is stupid. At least why not repair existing ones long before now? And that talk of 50 seater buses numbering 1600 touted as palliatives is just too retarded and embarrassing to be given any mention. Same with the pitiful 25% cut in executive salaries. Really?

    Free market is not opposed to a little government involvement. Besides, free market like any capitalist tool does not always allow for the most humane publicly beneficial and rational outcome hence the idea of state run packages like welfare. Given that the majority of users of internet technology in this country are the youths, we find this paradigm shift into forcing a more responsive, streamlined government free from waste, ineptitude, nepotism and every other ill associated with governance in Nigeria most welcome. It is as if the youths have suddenly become more aware and more involved. And even if they aren’t entirely trooping out on the streets in their youthful millions, they are clicking and typing in change. If the youths are thinking this way and can force this government to a standstill then we really should appreciate this first step. He could not have presented a better gift to our youths, one that has forced them to become more involved and thinking and if one were warped enough then a Thank you to GEJ for his gift isn’t entirely out of place. The gift that we call fuel subsidy removal,