By Tayo Joseph Lagos
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said Nigerians are shocked by moves
by the All Progressives Congress (APC)-controlled Federal Government to
cover huge fraud in the Presidency by declaring that it spends a
humongous N24 billion monthly (N774million per day) to subsidize fuel in
the country.
The party described the figures and the purported proliferation of fuel
stations, used as alibi for the claimed sudden jump in subsidy pay-out,
as fictitious and cleverly fabricated to retire the already exposed
stealing of trillions of naira by Presidency cabal and APC interests in
secret oil deals.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement on
Monday, said it is duplicitous for the Nigeria National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC) to claim a sudden surge in fuel purchase expenses at
the same time that the nation faced the harshest fuel shortage across
the country with Nigerians paying exorbitantly for the product.
The APC-led Presidency is drawing its deceptive proclivity and
concealment of fraud too far; and to think that such is hatched in a
sector that is under the direct supervision of President Muhammadu
Buhari as minister of petroleum affairs is most disheartening.
This is the same Presidency that claimed to have abolished fuel subsidy
payments and even accused the immediate past administration of alleged
corruption in its subsidy management. It is therefore strange that the
same government can pull out unimaginable figures and claim it is the
cost of subsidy enjoyed by Nigerians.
How come that with such humongous sums, Nigerians are still paying as
high as N250 to N300 per liter on fuel in various parts of the country?
We have since charged the Buhari-led Presidency to come out clear on the
truth on the administration of subsidy under its watch. The question is;
why is the Federal Government cloaking the subsidy regime in secrecy if
not to conceal its duplicity?
Nigerians need to know; who in the Presidency approved the spending of
the said N774million per day as fuel subsidy and who are the benefiting
companies? Is the subsidy captured in any appropriation instrument of
the National Assembly? What is the cost of landing imported fuel to the
depots and at what exchange rate? Where are the details of the subsidy
pay-out and the negotiating options and contracts?
In reeling out its figures, the Presidency has forgotten that Nigerians
are still waiting for its explanations on the leaked memo showing
alleged corrupt oil contracts at the NNPC to the tune of N9 trillion
($25billion dollars)
The Presidency has also refused to offer explanations to the alleged
involvement of its officials in various sneaky oil subsidy deals and
reported diversion of N1.1trillion worth of crude last year to service
APC interests.
Our take is that Nigerians must be told the truth at all times and not
be made to suffer for the fraud being perpetrated by APC interests and
the cabal at the Presidency.
