– Says it Is Inline With 18-Month Extension Of Subsidy Regime
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was inline when he announced that his predecessor, former President Muhammadu Buhari, had stopped the fuel subsidy regime.
President Tinubu had announced during his inaugural speech at the Eagles Square, in Abuja, that he inherited a 2023 appropriation bill that lacks any provisions for fuel subsidy.
He noted that since the 2023 budget projected by his predecessor made no provision for fuel subsidy, further payment was no longer justifiable.
Reacting to the development, the NNPCL in an emergency news briefing at the NNPC Towers, Abuja, described the announcement as a positive development on subsidy, noting that the move was in the best interest of the company.
According to NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, the company has been spending a substantial amount of its profits on subsidizing the product.
Kyari also allayed the fears of Nigerians insisting there was no need for panic buying as fuel queues had been noticed in some areas of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, immediately after the President made announcement.
According to Kyari, the company had enough product to go around the country for the next 30 days, adding that it was monitoring its supply and distribution networks around the country.
The Federal Government under former President Buhari had in January announced it would stop the payment of fuel subsidy by the end of June.
The former Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, had said the government only made provision of N3.36trillion to cover fuel subsidy payment for the first six months of this year.
She noted this was in line with the 18-month extension announced by the federal government earlier in 2022.