PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan on Monday said the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment programme promised by his administration was no longer possible
The President said SURE was hurriedly conceptualised in January on the heels of the nationwide protest s against the removal of the fuel subsidy. Jonathan added that the implementation was no longer feasible since the zero-subsidy policy planned by his administration was not being implemented.
Jonathan spoke at the 58th National Executive Committee meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party where he ordered his party men to retrieve copies of a SURE publication that had been advertised.
The PDP members had distributed the publication to attendees at the meeting, but on sighting the document the President expressed surprise and ordered that it should be withdrawn.
The President said, “As I came in, I saw this SURE book being distributed, we are withdrawing it. This is the old one. We developed this with the expectation that we were going to completely deregulate the downstream sector of the oil industry, (after) the 100 per cent removal of subsidy.
“You know we could not achieve that though there was an increase in the pump price. I don’t want this thing to be distributed; it will give a wrong impression.
“We are working on a new document based on the reality, but we don’t want to promise what we will not achieve. Those who have it please withdraw it, we cannot realise the money that is stated therein, but we will still come up with a document based on what we get.”
Curiously, Jonathan had inaugurated a board for the implementation of the SURE programme barely a week ago, on February 13. The board is headed by a former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr. Christopher Kolade.
Critics of the government and opposition parties had earlier predicted that the government could not be trusted to implement SURE which some of the critics had described as a “fraud”.
In the SURE document, which was distributed on Monday, government has put the total subsidy reinvestible funds at N1.134tn based on an average of $90 per barrel of crude oil.
According to the document, out of the total, N478.49bn would accrue to the Federal Government, while state governments and local governments would get N411.03bn and N203.23bn respectively.
The document adds that N9.86bn would go to the Federal Capital Territory while N31.37bn would be transferred to the Derivation and Ecology, Development of Natural Resources and Stabilisation Fund.
Among the items the Federal Government promised to spend money on were the construction of the East–West Road; construction of some roads and bridges in the six geo-political zones of the country; and the completion of rail routes.
The government also listed some of the irrigation projects it planned to embark on, promising that the revitalisation of the irrigation projects would increase the local production of rice by over 400,000 tonnes per year.
The withdrawn document further adds that government will contribute to the power sector reforms by improving generation capacity through hydro and coal power plants.
“The current subsidy regime in which fixed price is maintained irrespective of market realities has resulted in huge unsustainable subsidy burden,” the document says.
The government had on January 1, 2012 announced a total removal of subsidy on petrol but the consequent jump in the pump price of the product from N65 per litre to N141 had attracted nationwide protests and a strike action championed by organised labour and civil society groups.
Following a week of paralysis in the socio-economic sector, the government on January 16 agreed to revert the price of petroleum to N97 per litre.
The Federal Government, however, on February 15 proposed additional N656.3bn to the 2012 budget to cater for its subsidy on petrol.
Jonathan’s coordinating minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had in a statement explained that the 2012 Fiscal Framework earlier submitted to the National Assembly assumed 100 per cent subsidy removal and that only N155bn was provided for the carry-over of 2011 subsidy payments.
Okonjo-Iweala explained that the estimated total figure for subsidy in 2012 was N888bn, made up of N656.30bn for 2012 and N155bn as carry-over from 2011.
Shedding light on the subsidy budget for 2012, the minister stated that the amount was arrived at after extensive consultations with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency.
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FORGET MR PRESIDENT HE IS A DULL MAN, AND A BLOODY FOOL
ReplyDeletethey are just decieving themsleves. we did not believe them in the frist place. so he need not tell us that it is no longer possible.
ReplyDeleteMr president has no direction and vision to lead Nigeria
ReplyDeleteConfusion! Confusion!! Confusion!!!
ReplyDeleteMr. jonathan; U don't even have what it take to be call Father, I wonder how U manage to keep your Family together. You are very Weak. Your
ReplyDeletebones are tired, You are older than your Age. You don't even know what You are doing. Probably, You thought everyone is as foolish as you are. You don't worth been a Leader.
Joe or What are You called. You the Mistake Nigeria
ReplyDeleten has Made which needs to be corrected.
May the God of All Nation give our President-Jonathan Goodluck and his teammembers the needed Wisdom,Knowledge,Understanding to steer this ship(Naija)across river Euphrates and the rest ocean to a safe landing in Jesus name,amen.May we naija people not see setback,civil war and any other problems in this teething problem of great transformation is coming to naija.Naija people let pray for our country,when it is well for naija,it is well with all of us,there is no place like home.It is well in Jesus name,amen.L.A.O
ReplyDeleteIf the Prince of Peace were to be on Earth,He will handle the issue with Peace.The Bible says"overcome evil with good"Lets allow God Almighty to intervenes.He said"Be still,and know that I am God,I will be exalted among the heathen,I will be exalted in the Earth".It is well.L.A.O
ReplyDeleteMr president, I know you have what it takes to be called president of this nation, ride on God will see you throug. Amen
ReplyDeleteThe deadliest bombs in Nigeria have not been thrown by boko haram, the government has weapons of mass destruction in her kitty.
ReplyDeleteMaybe if the government was allowed to handle the subsidy removal as planned, they probably would have succeeded in their intent. Well, i think they should have known that a compromise of the basics of their plan would hamper their efforts. Oh well... Naija is all about stories... at the end of it all.
ReplyDeletethe nation is in a wobbling stage and only God's intervention will save our country. so let us pray
ReplyDeleteSconful men bring a city into a snare; but wise men turn away wrath. if a wise man contendeth with a foolish man, whether he rage or laugh, there is no rest. Mr president ! Remember you are going to leave that your sit of power one day, whether you like it or not, you would surely be quarried, because Almighty God is watching Every one of us.
ReplyDeleteMost of you people commenting here praying for GOD to save Nigeria from disintegration and so on....you all amaze me is this ignorance or self delusion cant u see what millions of people are suffering:poverty,injustice, oppression and even unwarranted deaths in the name of a country called Nigeria which is not even meant to exist as a country in the first place but was forced on the people to serve evil interest and is maintained by more evil few to serve their selfish ego and interest. Please keep your stupid prayers to yourselves because u don't know what God want to do with this thing called Nigeria and save millions from this misery imposed by their fellow men.Maybe HE says enough is enough and this is way of bringing to an end this scam of a country so let HIS will be done how ever he wish to do it.Remember Sodom and Gomorrah.You go die first before you dey go heaven.
ReplyDeleteLet us all (Nigerians and our Leaders) Repent from our sins and Almighty God (Allah) will forgive and Bestow upon us (Nigerians and Our Leaders) and make Nigeria greater
ReplyDeleteAmin.
Let us pray for our GEJ and his cabinets for God's guidance.
ReplyDeleteIt is well!
There is no morale in governance - Nicole Machiavelli. All over the World, Government have never been truthful. They will always shift the goal post whenever they perceive a score coming against them. GEJ is just playing the game of Governance. If you are in his shoes, you will play the same game, perhaps, introducing a different model. Let us learn from GEJ and be a solution instead of a problem.Amahfelix
ReplyDeleteGEJ IS AN UNPRINCIPLED ASSHOLE.
ReplyDeleteGOD FORGIVE HIM, THE STUPID DONKEY!
This greatest mistake that ever happens to Nigeria is having a PDP government in power and this goodluck guy is nothing but badluck to Nigerians looting continua.........poverty ascetera
ReplyDeleteMonky no de born gaot. Goat na Goat e de born and Monky na Monky e de born. you my fellow brothers and Sisters-Nigerians. whether you like it or not GEJ is standing as a father of this great country Nigeria which mean i and your father, we gave him our votes. so if you begin to call him names such like dull and a bloody fool, confuss man, no direction, unfit to be call a father and what have you, haba! think well o. can you mention one good thing that you yourself have done for nigeria? see you! like Father like son, keep insulting your father kaji ko?
ReplyDeletei put the blame on Nigeria labour Congress...the sold us out for their own interest. We should have fought this once and for all... There is no way i expect Nigeria to still trust in PDP lead governments, they are all criminals in agbada...
ReplyDelete