Opposition Parties Dismiss FG’s Claim of Saving $20bn from Subsidy Removal

Major opposition parties in Nigeria have expressed scepticism over the Federal Government’s claim of saving $20bn from the removal of fuel subsidies and the floating of the naira. The Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, had announced that the government had saved $20bn from President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms and market-based pricing of the foreign exchange rate.
The Labour Party’s National Legal Adviser, Kehinde Edun, described the report as “strange” and called for more transparency. “Perhaps we should give them a little time and see what they are doing with the money. We are just hearing that money is being saved. So, if money is being saved, we also deserve to know what is being done with it,” Edun said.
The Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Ibrahim Abdullahi, dismissed the claim as “too porous” and “a lie from the pit of hell.” Abdullahi argued that the report did not add up, given the government’s recent request for loan approval. “It doesn’t even justify the attention of anybody who wants to give that narrative any attention. It is pedestrian. It is the normal lies that the APC throws around,” Abdullahi said.
Abdullahi also questioned the government’s decision to seek loans while claiming to have saved $20bn. “Why do you now need to go cap in hand seeking loans to be able to fund your projects? You should have used the same resources that you have saved, which would even add up to common sense,” he said.
The National Publicity Secretary of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Ladipo Johnson, expressed concerns that the government’s boast about saving $20bn was meaningless unless the hardship and falling standard of living were addressed. “It is not just about saving $20bn. What is the resultant effect on the people and the economy? Has the money been ploughed elsewhere? If they say they’re giving the states more money, is it yielding economic benefits? That is what the people want to know,” Johnson said.
However, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) disagreed with the opposition’s argument. The National Publicity Director of the APC, Bala Ibrahim, said the opposition needed to be educated on the difference between securing loans and commentary on improved Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a country.
Ibrahim argued that being indebted did not necessarily mean being bankrupt. “The fact that you are indebted doesn’t mean you are bankrupt. In a modern economy, especially the international economy, the most indebted person is not necessarily the poorest,” he said.
Ibrahim also pointed out that the world was celebrating Nigeria’s growth in GDP and reduction in unemployment rate. “What they are failing to understand is that the world is also celebrating Nigeria for the growth in GDP and reduction in the unemployment rate. These are things the opposition is blind to or refusing to see,” he said.
The APC spokesperson concluded that the opposition was “busy looking at borrowing” and needed to learn from America’s example of using borrowing to inspire economic growth.