Fuel Crisis: Fayose Tells Osinbajo, Don’t Join ‘Liars In Buhari’s Government’

Ekiti State governor, Ayodele Fayose has attacked Vice President Osinbajo over his recent comment on the fuel scarcity experienced across the country.

Speaking recently, Osinbajo stated that the Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) bears the cost of fuel subsidy and not the federal government.

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The Vice President’s comments came days after NNPC Group Managing Director, Maikanti Baru, disclosed that the landing cost of petrol is now N171 as against the official retail price of N145.

Reacting on Wednesday, Fayose asked where the NNPC gets the money in which it uses to subsidise the price of petrol by N26 per litre.

In a statement issued by Lere Olayinka, his spokesman, the governor wondered if there was any difference between the NNPC and the federal government.

According to him, the NNPC does not have the rights to swap crude oil for subsidy nor to spend money it generates from its sales.

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“What is the difference between NNPC and the federal government? Who is NNPC and who is federal government? Is NNPC now an autonomous agency of the federal government?,” Fayose said.

“Where is NNPC getting the money with which it is subsidising petrol with N26 per litre? Is NNPC spending money from the sales of crude oil that should be paid into the federation account to pay subsidy?

“I like the vice-president, he is a pastor and I don’t believe that he will also join others in Buhari’s government to lie to Nigerians.

“However, this one that he presented NNPC as an agency of the federal government that can allocate fund without the approval of the president is very strange to me.

“Is it from sales of crude oil? Does it now mean that the NNPC is spending part of the proceeds of the sale of crude oil outside allocation to the federal government by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).

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“We were in Nigeria in May 2016, when the federal government announced the removal of subsidy on petrol and went on to increase the pump price of petrol to N145 per litre.

“The same APC people, who protested against removal of subsidy and increment of petrol price to N140 in 2012, defended the removal in 2016 and increment of pump price to N145.

“In 2017 budget of the federal government, provision was not made for the payment of fuel subsidy, so also that of 2018. So where is the N26 they are subsidizing one litre of petrol with coming from? Is the Buhari-led government spending fund not appropriated by the national assembly?”

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