Time to dislodge the fuel subsidy cabal

Time has passed. Nigerians have waited faithfully on the promises made by Minister of State Petroleum Dr. Ibe Kachikwu that fuel queues would disappear by last week. Today, the queues have remained and scarcity of petrol is persistently biting hard. There was a let up no doubt, but it was always a small trickle. There […]

Time has passed. Nigerians have waited faithfully on the promises made by Minister of State Petroleum Dr. Ibe Kachikwu that fuel queues would disappear by last week. Today, the queues have remained and scarcity of petrol is persistently biting hard. There was a let up no doubt, but it was always a small trickle. There is no hope for sustainability of supplies that Nigerians can hold on to.
The queues remain in Lagos, Abuja, and everywhere else in Nigeria. The hardship has continued. Every anomaly that would sustain the scarcity is still in place. Marketers divert and hoard to profiteer. Even pump metering instruments are tampered with, to cheat buyers. Jerry can black markets on our streets are doing booming business, manned by youth who ought to be in school. There is as well the disturbing though not surprising revelation by Kachikwu who also doubles as Managing Director Nigerian National Petroleum Company, that Marketers did beat Col. Ali’s Customs to smuggle the product out to Cameroon and other neighbouring countries.
This week, marketers distributing fuel have earned subsidy payments by cash or kind to ensure that petrol is available and sold at the controlled price, and that the price is uniform nationwide. Yet this has not been the case in reality. In the past, President Goodluck Jonathan sustained subsidy payments but Government was only fooled with what looked like stability in the oil industry. Alas it was a colourful blanket atop much sleaze for which the Government sustained its popularity.
Petrol is a critical component of our social economy. All that determine the quality of life of the citizenry depend on the price of petrol. For weeks that the litre sold for more that N500 and a gallon can for N2,500, prices in the market particularly of foodstuff skyrocketed beyond incomes of common folk. The predicament of salary earners particularly Local Council workers, teachers, and health care givers was made worse by the lingering failure of salaries. Sadly this bulk of the citizenry shouted the loudest cry of CHANGE that brought in the Buhari regime. There is shocking angst on the streets. People are hurting. Petty thievery of foodstuff is now common place, at times even on market days in broad daylight! In disbelief the ordinary folks are seeing that governments overtime share a common attribute – failure. Yet failure is not a common Muhammadu Buhari attribute. So what is the matter?
Nigeria has substantially defeated Boko Haram. There is more calm in the North East indeed this week, up to 10,000 internally displaced persons broke camp and returned to their homes unescorted. The anti-corruption struggle is gaining momentum as Nigerians watch its Government in muscle flexing with the corrupt and can see Government subduing the high and mighty. Nigeria has gained back its voice and leadership image in the comity of nations and citizens can walk tall globally. Sadly all of this does not give the common man pleasure. Yes, loot is being recovered, yes looters are being chased after, yes, and much of the rot has to do with misrule under President Goodluck Jonathan. But in his time, Nigerians did not spend days on fuel queues. The salary situation was not as unstable as now, and as long as this was the case, Nigerians turned a blind eye to the more damaging wrecking of the economy under Jonathan. They did not see what did not immediately hurt.
The popularity of the APC Government has today lowered dismally and supportive defense is lame, coming mostly from committed ideologues who know that President Buhari is only being thorough and firm, but ineffective, suggesting that President Muhammadu Buhari has to more than bare his fangs – "chop some heads off". Why not the subsidy cabals?
President Buhari needs speed up the deregulation of the oil industry. Them that have capacity should build refineries, refine and sell the product anywhere at price. Them that have import capacity, should import and sell freely at cost. Nigerians will select which brand suits their preference and Government will have relieved itself of unnecessary burden. The time to dislodge the subsidy cabals is now.

From America with what?
Yes I have in mind the old James Bond movie From Russia with Love. The American Envoy to the United Nations Ms. Samantha Power was in Abuja. Was it with love from America? In which case, I would ask in the Nigerian colloquial, "Na today or abi e don tey?"
Ms. Samantha Power’s mission to Abuja was to pledge American support for African countries ravaged by the Boko Haram insurgency. And we should say thanks, but no thanks. President Barak Obama’s attitude to Nigeria is part the reason the insurgency lasted this long, covered more territory than it should have, took more lives than it could have and affected more citizens than should have. America advanced 999 arguments to deny President Goodluck access to military equipment, albeit due to the character of that regime against which America proferred no solution. President Obama showed no love towards Nigeria that he appears to be offering now at the tail end of his lackluster Presidency, for he is leaving a world more chaotic than he found it – much of the chaos owing to America’s uncanny foreign policies. Under Obama, the US delisted Nigeria from its purchase of crude oil and looked more towards Angola and Ghana. Thus long before the collapse of the demand for oil, America had decided that Nigeria was not its choice supplier. Nigeria suffered economically. Yet the US is haven to not so small portion of funds looted from the Nigerian treasury by politicians who also nest there.
Did UN Permanent Representative Samantha Power come with love? Unless she brought much more than aid for the displaced and the offer of sharing of gathered intelligence. The US should take up some oil for dollars, and we would be more than grateful to say it is from America with love.