By Adaobi Rhema Oguejiofor
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has advised President Muhammadu Buhari to suspend the disbursement of the $800 million loan facility secured from the World Bank as a palliative to support the poorest of Nigerians after the removal of petrol subsidy in June.
The President of PENGASSAN, Festus Osifo, in an interview, said that if the interest is on how to protect the workforce, there must be a conversation around the things the government can do for Nigerian workers to become better.
Osifo stated that it is also difficult to understand why a government that is leaving office in a matter of days will disburse $800 million loan hurriedly, especially when to whom and to where the money will go is not known.
In his own words, “you cannot be spending public funds without accountability. We need to know how the money will be shared to individuals. Where are the bank accounts the money will be sent to? We should let the new government shape conversations around how the country will manage the money, in order to move the country forward.”
The PENGASSAN Boss also expressed hope that the Phase Five of the Port Harcourt refinery would come on stream in the third quarter of this year.
He blamed the high cost of petrol on the multiple exchange rate regime of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), stating that upon subsidy removal, if the official exchange rate is used, petrol should not cost more than N400 per litre, but it could cost over N700, if the unofficial rate is used in procuring the product.
The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has also questioned the Federal Government over the World Bank loan.
The Executive Director of CISLAC, Auwal Musa-Rafsanjani, in a statement released recently, lamented about the nonchalant attitude by the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration towards the country’s crippling debt crisis.
He said that borrowing money to fund post-fuel subsidy removal palliatives is a strange act.
In his words, “if the fuel subsidy removal process has been suspended, as announced by the Minister of Finance after the NEC meeting at the end of April, then the government should return the borrowed money. What are we taking the loan for?”
Rafsanjani stated that fears of the country getting another $800 million loan from the World Bank sends waves of worry in the minds of Nigerians, as the country’s revenue collection in 2022 stood only at N10 trillion, with a debt of about N77 trillion.
He added that if Nigeria is paying such whopping amount of money when subsidy is removed, it should have enough savings and instead of taking additional loans, the country can make use of the subsidy fund for post fuel subsidy removal.
In his words, “as a matter of fact, we don’t need to borrow. What we need to do is cut waste.”