Professor Anthony Killa from the Commonwealth Institute and Advanced Studies has analysed President Tinubu’s speech delivered on July 31st.
Killa critiqued the less than hour-long speech, stating that it lacked “discontinuance” and emphasising the importance of understanding the evolution of time in his perspective on the speech.
Regarding the fuel subsidy, Killa argued against its complete removal and instead proposed addressing abuse and mismanagement. He suggested solutions such as creating refineries, investing in alternative energy sources and mass transportation, and increasing revenue through refined oil exports.
He said, “Some still argue that the real issue of the fuel subsidy regime was the abuse, mismanagement, and outright fraud that corrupted the regime. It is my strongly held view that in the face of a situation where a very few are mismanaging, abusing, and looting a commonwealth facility created for the benefit of the very many, the appropriate response should be to sanitise the system with the aim of getting rid of its destructive parasites, not shut down the whole facility.
Adding further that “We cannot say because there are thieves in the market or kitchen, we are going to stop cooking for and feeding our children. Do we have to keep cooking for and feeding a child forever? No, not unless the child grows up with some sort of disability.”
‘When do we then remove the fuel subsidy, if ever, you may be asking? My position is that we make fuel subsidy redundant by making fuel available at local prices (creation of refineries), reducing and diversifying our demand for fuel (investment in alternative sources of energy, investment in mass transportation), and increasing value and revenue through the export of refined, not crude, oil. All these were to be done while managing the regime of fuel subsidy.”
While acknowledging the president’s intentions to invest and alleviate economic woes, the professor expressed concern about the proposed solutions, considering them weak and similar to past approaches.
“How can one fault such intentions? These are the noble intentions of someone or people who care and show they care about the pain of citizens. The speech is a sign that the president and those working around him are neither totally lost in a bubble nor prone to defending the undefendable, like some of their supporters and followers outside the office try to do.
”These proposed solutions are however patently weak, not outright wrong and worse still, similar to what has been done in the past”
Killa further recommended that the government should focus on creating a conducive environment for businesses to thrive, refraining from direct investments in ventures. He advocated for reducing taxes, levies, and charges to ease the economic burden on citizens, and emphasised the need to build a credit society based on employment and tax compliance.
“Enough of giving out funds, if we want to ease the economic burden of people, let government curtail its revenue by freezing taxes and putting a moratorium on levies, duties and other charges they put on transactions and properties.”
“Let us even reduce VAT and suspend land use charges while working towards building a truly credit society wherein your status as a tax payer and an employed citizen is what guarantees you a living not your ability to grovel or support.” He added.
