On-fuel-price-increase-failed-promises-and-the-ineptitude-of-a-government-the-sad-realities-of-the-buhari-led-administration
September 7, 2020 | News
ON FUEL PRICE INCREASE: FAILED PROMISES AND THE INEPTITUDE OF A GOVERNMENT – THE SAD REALITIES OF THE BUHARI-LED ADMINISTRATION
It is very unfortunate that, while other countries are tenaciously striving to reducing the “cost of living” to ease the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic and global recession on their citizens, in Nigeria our supposed Political leaders under the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Government are daily making life more unbearable, miserable and difficult for the people. With the recent increase in pump price of petrol to N151.56 (sold at filling stations at N162), I cannot help but wonder how we have left from N97 in the last five years to the current petrol pump price of N151. And I also wonder why are Nigerians not making the same noise and protests they made in 2012 when the same fuel pump price was increased under Goodluck Jonathan? Where are the #OccupyNigeria activists, are they still alive?
Some have come out to argue that Nigerians cannot be asking for subsidy removal and at the same time be asking for price not to change. And that fuel price will henceforth be following international price move. Even the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has defended the new hike in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol, saying unlike what obtained under the immediate past subsidy regime, Nigerians no longer have to endure tortuous queues to buy fuel. But why do we think price of fuel differs from country to country? How can they remove subsidy (that is IF they have), when you have VERY LOW CAPACITY TO PRODUCE LOCALLY? What has the Buhari-led Government been doing in the last 5 years? Can we boast of one functioning refinery in Nigeria today? Evidently, Buhari’s Advisers and Ministers are not telling him the whole Truth about this situation.
Also, what they all failed to realize and put into consideration is that, a lot of businesses have been adversely affected by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which have made many to be out of jobs, suffered financial loss/cuts, all in the face of rising food items and essential products and services. So, only a carefree regime and very insensitive Government will increase fuel price and electricity tariff during a pandemic. Nigerian citizens are suffering, while Buhari and his cabinet and supporters in the Government space are living in opulence. They would not understand, or even feel any impact with all of these increases in the cost of living because our collectively wealth is daily taking care of all of their needs and that of their families.
The most annoying part in all of this is that, the President Buhari-led Government is always blaming their gross ineptitude on others, never accepting responsibility. This was the same picture that was played out in 1984 when Buhari was the then Military Head of State. In fact, there is cropped picture of two newspapers headlines that has gone viral, which showed: “Buhari Blames Middlemen For Poor Economy” (published by the Sunday Herald in 1984), and another published by The Nation in 2020 which read: “Buhari: Corrupt Middlemen Behind Rising Food Prices.” And that is how this Government has continued to shift the blame for its ineptitude, failures and incompetence for not being able to deliver on its campaign promises. When a supposed political leader do not take responsibility for the things that go wrong under their reign, that is clear sign of a Government that has no willpower to navigate the people being led in the right direction.
As we speak, our VAT is 7.5%, Electricity tariffs have been doubled, New stamp duties on accounts, Unemployment rates at 27.1%, our GDP has declined by 6.1%, Dollar rate to the Naira stands at N440, Inflation is over 12%, reduction to less than 2% interest on savings, and now we have a petrol pump price at selling at N160-N162. President Buhari is steadily increasing the heat on Nigerians and like the proverbial boiling frog, Nigerians are being cooked alive. But rather than jump out, we are adjusting to the heat. When our tax was increased, we adjusted, when our insecurity situation went from bad to worse, we adjusted, and this trend has continued. And now the petrol hike – and we are adjusting.
When are we going to say Enough Is Enough? Adjust, pray, and watch Big Brother Naija/European Football/US Election campaigns, are what Nigerians in Nigeria doing best at the moment. I cannot think of any people, other than Nigerians, who make excuses to avoid confronting their oppressors masquerading as political leaders. There used to be an active Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in Nigeria that led protests against government high-handedness, but today our labour leaders are cheer leaders cheering on a repressive government. We miss the likes of Frank Ovie Kokori and Adams Oshiomhole as labour leaders and NUPENG leaders. Even the supposed Opposition PDP is not left out. What is the opposition party doing? They are busy issuing weak statements while waiting for the next election – obviously birds of the same feathers who care little or nothing about the welfare of the Nigerian masses.
The Buhari regime is daily becoming a plague on Nigerians. It is as if the sole purpose of this Government is to sniffle the economic life of struggling Nigerians. We should also not forget who the Minister of Petroleum is. It is the same President Buhari who had promised to reduce the suffering of Nigerians in his election campaigns. The same man who opposed increment of fuel prices in the past. The same former military leader whose regime has plunged Nigeria into recession. As some stakeholders have noted: What will Buhari be remembered for? His promises have been broken. He promised to fight corruption but somehow, corruption has been elevated to a national policy. Under his watch, key democratic institutions have been destroyed and rendered toothless. He has nether clues nor capacity to govern.
All I can say is that Buhari and his Government will never escape the verdict of history. As noted by a social affairs commentator on twitter: “A Book of Political Chronicles will be opened, all his travesty of governance will be well logged and documented. The man will go down as not just the worst president to ever rule Nigeria but as a metaphor for INCOMPETENCE.”
The bottom line is that this increase in the pump price of petrol at this time, is the most careless and thoughtless decision of the Federal Government under President Buhari. It was done without any consideration to the deplorable plight of the common man. With this increase in petrol price, the price of everything else will be increased, with loss of employment, as many private businesses may not be able to foot the operational cost of their businesses.
Zik Gbemre.
September 3, 2020.
We Mobilize Others To Fight For Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes
It is very unfortunate that, while other countries are tenaciously striving to reducing the “cost of living” to ease the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic and global recession on their citizens, in Nigeria our supposed Political leaders under the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Government are daily making life more unbearable, miserable and difficult for the people. With the recent increase in pump price of petrol to N151.56 (sold at filling stations at N162), I cannot help but wonder how we have left from N97 in the last five years to the current petrol pump price of N151. And I also wonder why are Nigerians not making the same noise and protests they made in 2012 when the same fuel pump price was increased under Goodluck Jonathan? Where are the #OccupyNigeria activists, are they still alive?
Some have come out to argue that Nigerians cannot be asking for subsidy removal and at the same time be asking for price not to change. And that fuel price will henceforth be following international price move. Even the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has defended the new hike in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol, saying unlike what obtained under the immediate past subsidy regime, Nigerians no longer have to endure tortuous queues to buy fuel. But why do we think price of fuel differs from country to country? How can they remove subsidy (that is IF they have), when you have VERY LOW CAPACITY TO PRODUCE LOCALLY? What has the Buhari-led Government been doing in the last 5 years? Can we boast of one functioning refinery in Nigeria today? Evidently, Buhari’s Advisers and Ministers are not telling him the whole Truth about this situation.
Also, what they all failed to realize and put into consideration is that, a lot of businesses have been adversely affected by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which have made many to be out of jobs, suffered financial loss/cuts, all in the face of rising food items and essential products and services. So, only a carefree regime and very insensitive Government will increase fuel price and electricity tariff during a pandemic. Nigerian citizens are suffering, while Buhari and his cabinet and supporters in the Government space are living in opulence. They would not understand, or even feel any impact with all of these increases in the cost of living because our collectively wealth is daily taking care of all of their needs and that of their families.
The most annoying part in all of this is that, the President Buhari-led Government is always blaming their gross ineptitude on others, never accepting responsibility. This was the same picture that was played out in 1984 when Buhari was the then Military Head of State. In fact, there is cropped picture of two newspapers headlines that has gone viral, which showed: “Buhari Blames Middlemen For Poor Economy” (published by the Sunday Herald in 1984), and another published by The Nation in 2020 which read: “Buhari: Corrupt Middlemen Behind Rising Food Prices.” And that is how this Government has continued to shift the blame for its ineptitude, failures and incompetence for not being able to deliver on its campaign promises. When a supposed political leader do not take responsibility for the things that go wrong under their reign, that is clear sign of a Government that has no willpower to navigate the people being led in the right direction.
As we speak, our VAT is 7.5%, Electricity tariffs have been doubled, New stamp duties on accounts, Unemployment rates at 27.1%, our GDP has declined by 6.1%, Dollar rate to the Naira stands at N440, Inflation is over 12%, reduction to less than 2% interest on savings, and now we have a petrol pump price at selling at N160-N162. President Buhari is steadily increasing the heat on Nigerians and like the proverbial boiling frog, Nigerians are being cooked alive. But rather than jump out, we are adjusting to the heat. When our tax was increased, we adjusted, when our insecurity situation went from bad to worse, we adjusted, and this trend has continued. And now the petrol hike – and we are adjusting.
When are we going to say Enough Is Enough? Adjust, pray, and watch Big Brother Naija/European Football/US Election campaigns, are what Nigerians in Nigeria doing best at the moment. I cannot think of any people, other than Nigerians, who make excuses to avoid confronting their oppressors masquerading as political leaders. There used to be an active Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in Nigeria that led protests against government high-handedness, but today our labour leaders are cheer leaders cheering on a repressive government. We miss the likes of Frank Ovie Kokori and Adams Oshiomhole as labour leaders and NUPENG leaders. Even the supposed Opposition PDP is not left out. What is the opposition party doing? They are busy issuing weak statements while waiting for the next election – obviously birds of the same feathers who care little or nothing about the welfare of the Nigerian masses.
The Buhari regime is daily becoming a plague on Nigerians. It is as if the sole purpose of this Government is to sniffle the economic life of struggling Nigerians. We should also not forget who the Minister of Petroleum is. It is the same President Buhari who had promised to reduce the suffering of Nigerians in his election campaigns. The same man who opposed increment of fuel prices in the past. The same former military leader whose regime has plunged Nigeria into recession. As some stakeholders have noted: What will Buhari be remembered for? His promises have been broken. He promised to fight corruption but somehow, corruption has been elevated to a national policy. Under his watch, key democratic institutions have been destroyed and rendered toothless. He has nether clues nor capacity to govern.
All I can say is that Buhari and his Government will never escape the verdict of history. As noted by a social affairs commentator on twitter: “A Book of Political Chronicles will be opened, all his travesty of governance will be well logged and documented. The man will go down as not just the worst president to ever rule Nigeria but as a metaphor for INCOMPETENCE.”
The bottom line is that this increase in the pump price of petrol at this time, is the most careless and thoughtless decision of the Federal Government under President Buhari. It was done without any consideration to the deplorable plight of the common man. With this increase in petrol price, the price of everything else will be increased, with loss of employment, as many private businesses may not be able to foot the operational cost of their businesses.
Zik Gbemre.
September 3, 2020.
We Mobilize Others To Fight For Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes