Nigerians are lamenting the removal of fuel subsidies by President Bola Tinubu as queues returned to Lagos and Abuja, the country’s capital, on Monday.
Tinubu, during his inauguration on Monday, declared that the fuel subsidy was gone, sending the country into a frenzy and its citizens into hardship on his first day on the job.
Nigeria, a major oil producer in Africa and also the largest crude oil exporter on the continent, has not had a functioning fuel refinery in decades, leaving black marketers to smile to the bank at the detriment of motorists and other fuel users.
Reports gathered by Chronicle NG revealed that some marketers responded to Tinubu’s fuel subsidy speech by increasing their prices by about 100 percent, from N185 per litre to N370.
In response to the increase, commercial operators increased their trip fares across the country.
Reacting to the subsidy removal, John Akinloye, a motorist along the Agege area, said, “I was not surprised to see queues at the fuel stations after the announcement. I just pray this sad and unfortunate development will not last so as not to put the suffering masses through another round of economic and mental torture.
“I have been at the fuel station for over an hour and am yet to get to the fuel pump point. Even the fuel attendants are not willing to sell more than N3,000 per buyer. If you want to buy N4,000, they are refusing.”
On social media, @WilsonDaka stated that “as good as his intentions are, I don’t think it’s the best way to kick off his administration. I mean making the citizens go through difficulty accessing petroleum products at the start of his administration,” he wrote on Twitter.
@Kingkhelz1 questioned the affordability of the hiked pump price when he said, “What’s the minimum wage? How much will transportation cost now? Food cost? Is there no way to ease it out? We take very radical decisions in Nigeria without thinking about the aftermath”.
While questioning the entire system, @TimesChangesyday started, “@AlikoDangote refinery, how far? Nigerians will soon come with gallons to buy direct from the refinery. No Nigerian should be afraid of hell because, for the average Nigerian, every day is hell. A stoop! d system!”
Holding a contrary opinion, Mr. Duke, @onyiduke, supported the development, stating that “it’s a welcome development if that’s the price we all have to pay for a better Nigeria fuel subsidy removal that’s long overdue”.
The development has resulted in commuters being stranded at several bus stations, waiting to board commercial buses that may have been caught up in the rush that accompanied the elimination of fuel subsidies.
