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Senator Sani Musa, representing Niger East Senatorial District in the 10th National Assembly, has described President Bola Tinubu's decision to pull the plug on the petrol subsidy regime as the best thing to happen to Nigeria.
Sani, who doubles as the chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, made this known while praising Tinubu's economic reforms, especially on petrol subsidy and floating of the naira.
On his first day in office on May 29, 2023, the President ended the long-standing fuel subsidy which had become an albatross that prevented the nation from maximising its revenue usage.
The controversial policy was gulping billions of dollars yearly, making it impossible to prioritise investment in critical sectors.
At the same time, Tinubu also liberalised the foreign exchange market, scrapping the multiple exchange windows to allow the naira to find its true value in a bid to convince foreign investors.
Though the reforms triggered an economic hardship as Nigerians struggled with increasing fuel and food prices, the government continues to defend the policies as necessary measures to revive Africa's largest economy, an argument supported by investors.
Senator lauds Tinubu's reforms
Meanwhile, Sani lauded the Tinubu-led administration for summoning the courage to embark on the needed reforms.
“We want to be sure that what we are doing is not going to reflect negatively on Nigerians.
“What this government is doing, by virtue of the fact that we removed subsidy, removing subsidy is the best thing that has happened to this country,” the senator said on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday, November 8, 2024.
He further argued that the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) disburses enough funds to states every month.
The lawmaker criticised some states for not making judicious use of the increased allocation they’ve been getting due to the removal of the petrol subsidy to address some major issues in their jurisdiction.
“Today how much are we owing? If the money that Nigeria is making today and the money that FAAC is distributing to the states, the state government utilise that money adequately, a lot of things will go well,” he stated.
The senator also noted the President is taking his time before presenting the 2025 budget to the National Assembly to prevent lapses, insisting that it's not too late in the day to present the appropriation bill.
He said there has been a lot of agitation from Nigerians that the government was rushing policies, explaining that Tinubu considered those voices and is now meticulous in ensuring he presents a solid budget.
“I believe that Mr President is now considering those voices that Nigerians made in making sure that the budget he is bringing is a budget that will rediscover the economy of Nigeria, so I don’t think it is late (to present the budget).
“I believe Mr President is doing what he is supposed to do in order to checkmate whatever lapses we had in the 2024 budget and then correct them in the 2025 budget. So, for me, it is not too late,” Sani concluded.