PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has dismissed the call by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and other leading economists to remove subsidy from petroleum products, saying that the argument has increasingly become untenable.
He made the assertion in an interview published in an international online newspaper, bloomberg.com, where he also defended the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, over his recent attempt to join the presidential race.
The president wondered why Nigeria would remove subsidy whereas western countries are implementing it.
He argued: “Most western countries are today implementing fuel subsidies. Why would we remove ours now? What is good for the goose is good for the gander! “What our western allies are learning the hard way is what looks good on paper and the human consequences are two different things.
“My government set in motion plans to remove the subsidy late last year. After further consultation with stakeholders and as events unfolded this year, such a move became increasingly untenable. Boosting internal production for refined products shall also help.
“Capacity is due to step up markedly later this year and next, as private players and modular refineries (Dangote Refinery, BUA Group Refinery, Waltersmith Refinery) come on board.
“The exchange rate is still susceptible to external shocks that can suddenly and severely affect Nigerian citizens. As we step up domestic production – both in fuel (enabled by PIA) and food (agricultural policies) – the inflationary threat shall diminish and we can move toward unification.”
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On fulfilling his campaign promises of fighting corruption, securing the country and fixing the economy after eight years in office, he stated: “We leave Nigeria in a far better place than we found it. Corruption is less hidden as Nigerians feel empowered to report it without fear, while money is returned; terrorists no longer hold any territory in Nigeria and their leaders are deceased and vast infrastructure development sets the country on course for sustainable and equitable growth.”
Asked why the country’s crude production has been slumping despite him being the Minister of Petroleum, President Buhari said: “Four years ago, we unveiled plans for a new gas pipeline connecting Nigeria to Europe. Last week (June 2) – in record time – the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) entered into an agreement with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for its construction.
“Concurrently on July 1, the NNPC will become a Limited Liability Company and be subject to more robust auditing and commercial disclosure obligations. It will help stimulate investment and boost transparency, where corruption has deterred the former and stymied the latter.
“My administration is the first to pass this landmark reform in our oil and gas sector, after two decades of predecessors’ failure to do so – no doubt due to vested interests.
“Criminality and terrorism in oil-producing regions hamper production and it would help if our western allies designated IPOB [Independent People of Biafra] as a terrorist group, given their complicity in damage to pipelines and infrastructure.
“We have invested in our security forces, including the $1 billion military deal with the U.S. for the acquisition of A-29 Super Tucano aircraft. These efforts are making an impact: wells that had to be closed due to criminality have now re-opened. With these efforts, OPEC has raised our quota for next month.”
The president accused IPOB of complicity in crude oil pipeline vandalism, which he said has hampered production in the country.
He, therefore, stressed the need for western allies to designate it as a terrorist group, rather than arm and provide safe haven for its members.
President Buhari also defended Emefiele over his alleged interest to contest the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying only the apex bank’s board can determine whether his action violated the law or not.
Buhari stated: “The CBN governor is appointed by the president. But this appointment is subject to confirmation by the Nigerian Senate. Ultimately, it will be for the CBN’s board of directors to determine whether the CBN governor’s actions have fallen foul of the laws in place to ensure he can most effectively carry out his duties.
“But there is a subtext to the accusations. Because the governor follows a model outside of the economic orthodoxy, he is labelled political. But the orthodoxy has proved wrong time and again.
“Instead, the governor is following an alternative economic model that puts people at the heart of policy. Nigeria should be free to choose its development model and how to construct our economy, so it functions for Nigerians.”
On security, he said: “In 2015, Boko Haram held territory the size of Belgium within the borders of Nigeria. Today they are close to extinct as a military force. The leader of ISWAP was eliminated by a Nigerian Air Force airstrike in March.
“The jets acquired from the US and intelligence shared by British were not provided to previous administrations and stand as testament to renewed trust re-built between Nigeria and our traditional western allies under my government.
“We urge those same international partners to take additional steps costing them nothing, by proscribing another group – IPOB – as a terrorist organisation.
“Their leadership enjoys safe haven in the West, broadcasting hate speech into Nigeria from London, spending millions lobbying members of the US Congress and freely using international financial networks to arm agitators on the ground. This must stop.
“My administration is the only in Nigeria’s history to implement a solution to decades-long herder-farmer conflicts, exacerbated by desertification and demographic growth. The National Livestock Transformation Plan, putting ranching at its core, is the only way to deplete the competition for resources at the core of the clashes.
“Governors from some individual states have sought to play politics where ranches have been established; but where they have been disputes have dramatically reduced.”
Also speaking on the economy, he asserted: “How prescient our policies for boosting domestic production have become! For years we have been criticised by the likes of the FT, the Economist, and others for supposedly mistaken attempts to deglobalise and re-localise food production and boost manufacturing.
“Now with the war in Ukraine breaking global food supply chains ‘Davos Man’ is in retreat as the energy crisis makes countries everywhere think again about energy independence and security. We have spent our two terms investing heavily in national road, rail and transport infrastructure set to unleash growth, connect communities and lessen inequality.
“This is structural transformation. It may not show on standard economic metrics now, but the results will be apparent in good time.”
President Buhari also addressed that issue of killing of people accused of blasphemy, noting that nobody has the right to take the laws into their hands.
“No person has the right to take the law into his or her own hands. Christianity and Islam, our two great faiths and their great books have far more in common than they have apart. Nigeria has a long tradition of tolerance that we must draw on, and we must strive to find common ground.
“What comes out of this tragedy is to cherish what we share while, at the same time, respect our differences,” he said.
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