Fuel Subsidy: Mixed Reactions as Long Queues Return to Filling Stations
By Rahma Oladosu
AREWA AGENDA – Barely 24 hours after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced his decision to implement the subsidy removal policy of his predecessor, President Muhammadu Buhari, there has been a quick return of long queues at various filing stations all over the nation.
While making his inaugural speech at the Eagle Square on Monday, President Tinubu commended his predecessor for his economic choices, saying fuel subsidy is gone and gone for good.
This development received mixed reactions from Nigerians, who said the decision to stop subsidising fuel was too soon and could cause hardship while others said it was a good decision considering the humongous six trillion naira spent on fuel subsidy last year at the expense of health and education which took only a combined figure of 1.6 trillion naira.
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Speaking to ECONOMY ON THE STREET on Tuesday, the Abuja residents lamented the fact that the President’s announcement has led to sudden queues due to panic buying and hoarding of the product by filling stations.
“It’s just because of the announcement the President made, immediately after that everybody started panicking and filling stations started hoarding fuel and shutting down,” said one of the interviewees who declined to mention his name.
“As of yesterday I bought fuel where I live and there was no queue but waking up today to see the long queues is really bad,” he lamented.
“If removing the fuel subsidy is the best step to take to have a better Nigeria, then so be it” another respondent said.
Majority of the respondents pleaded with the Federal Government to utilise the subsidy fund to grow other sectors of the economy to make their sacrifices worth it.
ECONOMIC CONFIDENTIAL can report that as at the time of going to press on Wednesday afternoon, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has began selling PMS in the FCT, Lagos and Port Harcourt at N537, N488 and N511 respectively.
