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Minimising the pains of fuel hike
As the
nation eagerly awaits the final report of the Senator Ibrahim Mantu-led
Committee for cushioning the effects of the recent hike in pump prices of fuel,
the National Economic Council has given approval to some recommendations made
in the Committee’s interim report. These include, the provision of a
minimum of N100 million grant-in-aid by the Federal Government to each state
with a 200 percent matching contribution by each state for on-lending to
transport operators at no more than three percent, reduction of duties on buses
from 22 percent to 10 percent and reduction of duties on pharmaceutical drugs
from 20 percent to 5 percent.
The Government has also
agreed to address the main policy measures, canvassed in the progress report,
while urging State Governments to liaise with their stakeholders on what other
relevant cushioning measures they can adopt and implement.
The National Economic
Council appreciates the facts that these measures announced are not far
reaching, hence its recommendation to the President (as the authority setting
up the Committee) to consider any amendment to the terms of reference and if
need be, the expansion of membership if such amendments would lead to permanent
solutions to the incessant price increased, the strikes it ignites and their
effects on the national economy.
It is however good that
government has come out promptly with some palliatives in line with the
feverish expectation of the citizenry. These palliatives rolled out, may be
short of our expectations. Nonetheless, it demonstrates government’s
sensitivity to the problems at hand. We need not wait for perfect conditions
before action is taken. As the Holy Scripture says, if you wait for perfection,
you will never get anything done (Ecclesiastics 11:4).
The tone of the
communiqué of the National Economic Council Meeting with President
depicts a ring of urgency and the anxiety of the government to find short,
medium and long-term solutions to the unpalatable side effects of the
deregulation of the downstream petroleum industry. What Government has
demonstrated is recognition of the fact that a compromise, where necessary
(giving in where that will achieve a better result and acknowledgement of the
virtues of an opponent) does not make one weak. Other stakeholders,
particularly Labour, should join hands in the peaceful resolution of the
problem. They should assist the Mantu-led Committee to expeditiously accomplish
its mandate for the benefits of all concerned. After all, neither Labour, nor the
Government, nor the citizens benefit from strikes and the confusion they
generate.
The advantages of
deregulation over regulation policy need no further emphasis. Suffice it to say
that its superior advantages over regulation made it a global trend in the new
world order.
As we await the final
report of the Mantu Committee, let every stakeholder strive for what is best
for our polity. Evidently, time has come for the government to make the
building of private refineries a necessary condition for oil marketers’
continuous participation in the downstream sector of the petroleum industry.
She should in addition, embark on aggressive provision of railway facilities in
all parts of the country and give the citizens an effective means of
transportation.
Aminanwa Isibor,
Benin City
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