Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has defended the removal of the petrol subsidy, saying the decision was necessary despite the hardship it initially imposed on Nigerians.
Otti stated this in an exclusive interview with Arise Television on Friday while discussing the economic impact of subsidy removal and his longstanding position on the policy.
The governor said he had consistently opposed subsidising fuel consumption, arguing that government resources should instead be channelled towards supporting production.
“I don’t have a problem supporting production, but consumption should not be subsidised,” Otti said.
He recalled that he had written in support of removing the subsidy in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the global demand for crude oil had dropped significantly. According to him, the situation at the time presented an opportunity for Nigeria to end the subsidy.
Otti also argued that subsidising fuel consumption encouraged waste because consumers did not bear the full cost of what they used.
“You know, as election approaches, people will be making all sorts of arguments, but removing the subsidy was the right thing to be done.
“And I don’t think anybody who is praying that subsidy returns means well for the country,” he said.
The governor further described the subsidy regime as vulnerable to abuse, calling it a “scam.”
He explained that when fuel consumption was subsidised, motorists had less reason to control how much fuel they used.
“So if you are being subsidised, you can just blast all vehicles, maybe 20 vehicles, you put all of them on the road because somebody is paying for it,” he said.
While acknowledging that removing the subsidy would initially cause hardship, Otti maintained that the policy was necessary.
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