By Bimbola Oyesola
Organised Private Sector (OPS) yesterday threw its support for the removal of fuel subsidy as proposed by the Federal Government, saying it is riddled with corruption.
But it warned that it is also important for government to take step to address the socio-economic issues that would arise from the subsidy removal.
The Organized Private Sector of Nigeria (OPSN), comprising Manufacturers Association of Nigeria(MAN), Nigeria Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), Nigeria Association of Small Scale Industries (NASSI) and Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME) addressing the media on the state of the nation on Tuesday, said the fuel-subsidy regime seems fraught with corruption with few petroleum importers benefiting.
They said the subsidy payment is a huge leakage from the revenue portfolio of the nation, adding that there is need to address it urgently in order to free up needed funds for development.
Chairman of the OPSN, Mr Taiwo Adeniyi, who doubles as the President of NECA, said Nigerians should not suffer for a product that their nation is endowed with and neither should they suffer for the inefficiencies in government.
He said: “It is no gainsaying that the current subsidy regime is not sustainable, with the subsidy payment hovering around N150billion monthly and around N2trillion annually. With the removal of subsidy, the funds that would be saved could help address the wide infrastructural deficits and other gap in the country. “