By Adaobi Rhema Oguejiofor
The Chief Executive Officer of CFG Advisory, Mr Tilewa Adebayo, has said that fuel subsidy removal has been heavily politicized amidst Nigeria’s rising debt profile.
Adebayo disclosed this in an interview on Wednesday, while reacting to the Federal Government’s claim to end fuel subsidies by May. In his own views, Nigeria’s rising debt burden would be lessened if the government gradually removed fuel subsidy.
According to him, five years ago, he had proposed that a gradual removal of fuel subsidy, involving 10 to 15 percent removal each year, be adopted instead of the proposed approach being brandished by the government.
Adebayo mentioned that although the federal government had improved on its non-oil revenue generation capacity, it should make more investments in order to expand the economy.
His advise comes even as the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, has continued to lament about the negative impact that fuel subsidy has had on Nigeria’s debt burden. The Minister believes that, as a solution, President Muhammadu Buhari would have to announce the total removal of fuel subsidy before handing over power to the next government later in May.