21st February, 2012
Nigerians have slammed President Jonathan over his comment that the fuel subsidy palliatives he promised are no longer possible.
The President had yesterday said the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme, SURE, he promised was no longer realistic because there was no 100 percent removal of the fuel subsidy which he canvassed for.
Speaking with P.M.NEWS this morning, constitutional lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay said, “Nigerians have been vindicated because no government has ever successfully used the accrual of subsidy removal to benefit the people, apart from the Abacha government.”
Sagay said he was not surprised about Jonathan’s comment saying, “We are back to square one”.
Also commenting, former governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa, said it is not surprising to hear the comment the President made as it was expected because, “we suspected the Federal Government was broke and that is why it tried to get the money from the people to balance its budget.”
Musa called on the President to resign for not being able to fulfill the promise he made to the people to provide palliative measures as a result of the biting effect of the fuel subsidy removal. Also speaking, spokesman of the Save Nigeria Group, SNG, Mr. Yinka Odumakin lamented that the President had always claimed to keep his promise but he never believed the President for once.
According to Odumakin, the Jonathan government had just shown that it could not be trusted. Speaking on the issue, the Convener of Coalition Against Corrupt leaders, CACOL, Comrade Debo Adeniran said, “Jonathan’s statement was uncalled for and that it shows his government is not a serious one and that the President speaks with both sides of his mouth.
“We cannot trust them again. They are saddistic. We should know that 70 per cent of Nigerians live below the poverty line,” Adeniran said.
National President, Campaign for Democracy, CD, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin said she was not surprised by Jonathan’s statement as the President had not always been consistent.
“The citizens must brace up for harder days and they should realise that they are dealing with a wicked government.
“The President is only implementing the International Monetary Fund, IMF policy. We should not believe this government again. We should reject any loan he wants to take.”
The Publicity Secretary, Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Lagos State, Mr. Joe Igbokwe said “we cannot take him seriously. What they want is the money to share.”
“This President cannot be serious. Does he know what governance is all about? The entire business of governance is all about the welfare of the people and nothing more. Even without subsidy removal, the President under obligation to provide these palliatives.
“Bostwana, a small but unique country in Africa discovered Diamond recently. The wise leaders of that country went to refashion their constitution to make it mandatory for every citizen of that country to benefit from the resources that will accrue from it. This is leadership simplicatal. This PDP government should for once disappoint Nigerians by getting serius,” Igbokwe declared.
—Kazeem Ugbodaga