..subsidy removal should be like tooth pain removal
The presidential flag bearer of the labour party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi has joined in the on going debate about the subsidy removal, saying he has always been an ardent supporter of the removal of fuel subsidy.
Obi spoke after a court proceeding on Tuesday at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja.
He said ” as I attended my ongoing petition case at the Court of Appeal today, Tuesday, June 6, 2023, judicial correspondents ambushed me at the entrance of the court and demanded that I should talk to them”
“When I told them I don’t speak on the matter before the court, they insisted that I should comment on the subsidy removal, which the government representatives were touting that I am in support of”
“Reacting, I told them that I’ve actually been in support of the removal of subsidies right from the President Goodluck Jonathan era, when I was a member of the Economic Management team”
Obi said as a member of the former president Jonathan ‘s economic team, be supported the removal of subsidy, saying it was an organized fraud.
“If you have followed me very well right from the time I was a member of Jonathan’s economic management team, I consistently maintained that subsidy should be removed because I see it as organized crime”
He likened what the removal should be as a tooth pain removal. One which will be removed but felt little pain.
“I also gave them the “tooth pain” removal analogy that if you approach a dentist to remove a painful tooth, he will apply a local anesthetic to numb the area around the tooth so you do not feel pain. It’s not the same thing as pulling the tooth forcefully, the pain you feel will be different. For me, I will go with the approach of the dentist, while supporting the removal of the tooth because I wouldn’t want to go through the pain of a forceful removal”
“Recall that even when Jonathan’s government wanted to remove it they came up with various relieving policies like Sure-P and others”
“If you read my manifesto you will see clearly how I planned to remove subsidies. I will govern with the people and show them statistically and empirically what we are going to save, and what we are going to do using the savings to better the suffering masses”
Obi said, Nigerian leaders will ask the people to suffer and sacrifice for the future, whereas the future is worse.
“The problem in Nigeria is that often government tell the masses to suffer and sacrifice, for a better future; but in future things gets worse”
