By CECILIA JOHN
ABUJA- Mr Eze Onyekpere, Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice(CSJ) has called for the gradual removal of subsidy in Nigeria.
Onyekpere made the call at the Public Policy Dialogue and Unveiling of Partnership for Amplified Voices (PAV) in Abuja.
The director, who was the keynote presenter of a paper titled “Fuel Subsidy and Nigeria’s Future: Looking Back, Thinking Ahead”, said it was time a drastic action was taken on subsidy.
He said the removal process could be in two phases , which could last for a period of two years.
Onyekpere said 50 per cent subsidy could be removed in the first year, while the remaining 50 per cent could be removed in the second year.
Onyekpere said other measures could also be put in place to make the process a success.
“Government should engage organised labour, private sector and the public with relevant information and design a social intervention programme to cushion the hardship in critical sectors like transport, agriculture, food.
“Government should also take steps to conclude the revitalisation of existing refineries and thereafter run them efficiently.
“In the alternative, government should concession or privatise them after the repairs and turn-around maintenance.
“The proposed private sector participation should be done under a process that is transparent and that guarantees value for money.
“It should also ensure that the firm has technical, financial and managerial capacity to run the refineries.
“On no account shall a firm taking over the management of the refineries be allowed to engage in asset stripping.
“Government should also transparently support Dangote Refinery to start production at the earliest time.”
On controversies surrounding actual Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) consumption, the director said government should conduct an open and transparent public inquiry into the matter.
He also called for decisive action on oil theft
“The Nigerian people have been massively wronged and robbed and as such need a remedy through prosecution and conviction of offenders.
“Also, there should be recovery of stolen resources, compensation, apology and guarantees of non-repetition through system strengthening,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that stakeholders at the dialogue including the World Bank Country Director, representative of Connected Development (CODE) also lent their voices.
Other stakeholders including the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) attended the event. (NAN)
