A prominent chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Bode George, has urged President Bola Tinubu to be transparent about the fuel subsidy, asking him to reveal the truth about whether the government is still paying subsidy on fuel through the back door.
George, a former deputy national chairman of the PDP, made the call during a live television program in Lagos on Friday, expressing frustration over the lack of clarity on the issue.
He noted that there have been conflicting reports, with some claiming that the government has returned fuel subsidy, while others deny it.
The former governors of Bauchi and Kaduna States, Isa Yuguda and Nasir El-Rufai, have accused the government of paying more for fuel subsidy than before.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, revealed that Nigeria spends $600m on fuel importation monthly.
George emphasized that Nigerians deserve to know the truth, stating, “Let us know the truth for God’s sake, it is our fundamental right… If the people know what the truth is, they will support you to succeed.”
He also called for transparency in the operations of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), which is owned by the Federal government, saying, “We want to know what exactly is going on there.”
Alex Ogbonnaya
A chieftain of the People Democratic Party, Bode George, has called on President Bola Tinubu to come out and tell Nigerians the truth about fuel subsidy.
George, a former deputy national chairman of PDP said Nigerians deserved to know if the Tinubu government was still paying subsidy on fuel through the back door or not.
There have been speculations that the Federal government had returned fuel subsidy with the former governors of Bauchi and Kaduna States, Isa Yuguda and Nasir El-Rufai accusing the government of now paying more for fuel subsidy than before.
Recall that the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun revealed that Nigeria currently spends $600m on fuel importation monthly.
But George while featuring on a live Television programme in Lagos on Friday, bemoaned what he called the lack of transparency by the Federal government regarding the payment of fuel subsidy.
“I’m so miffed about the goings on about this particular industry. On one side you hear the subsidy is still there, on another side you hear that there is no subsidy, who is telling the truth? Let us know the truth for God’s sake, it is our fundamental right and if the people know what the truth is, they will support you to succeed.
“The NNPCL is owned by the Federal government which means it is owned by all Nigerians, we want to know what exactly is going on there. I’m not in that field of operation, but I’m educated enough to listen to A and listen to B and then conclude in mind if there is need to support the operations or the policies of the government we will and if there are shortfalls in what they are telling us, we will say,” George said.
