That Fayemi’s Confession on 2012 Fuel Subsidy Removal

The confession by a former governor of Ekiti State, Dr, Kayode Fayemi, that the protest launched against the fuel subsidy removal during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2012 was mere politics has revealed how dirty and selfish politics is played in Nigeria.

On January 1, 2012, the then President Jonathan announced the removal of fuel subsidy, therefore, adjusting the pump price of petrol from N65 per litre to N141.

But the announcement sparked mass protests, known as ‘Occupy Nigeria’ across major cities of the country.

The price was later adjusted to N97 after a week of protests. It was further reduced to N87 in 2015.

Jonathan faced serious backlash from the adjustment in fuel price, especially from leaders of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), who are now in the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Other parties that antagonised Jonathan’s administration included the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

But Fayemi while delivering his keynote address at a national dialogue organised to celebrate the 60th birthday of the founding National Secretary of Alliance for Democracy (AD), Professor Udenta Udenta, in Abuja, shocked Nigerians, declaring that though they knew the truth in 2012 that fuel subsidy was not sustainable, they deliberately mounted pressure for Jonathan to reverse the policy.

The former governor admitted that the last time Nigeria experienced economic development was during Jonathan’s administration.

 “All political parties in the country agreed and they even put in their manifesto that subsidy must be removed. We all said subsidy must be removed. But we in ACN at the time in 2012, we know the truth, sir, but it is all politics. That is why we must ensure that everybody is a crucial stakeholder by stopping all these.” 

What Fayemi did not realise is that their action was tantamount to economic sabotage. The protests then and Jonathan’s reversal of the policy pushed the country backward 20 years, and also caused her a huge loss. The money which is in trillions of naira that the Muhammadu Buhari administration expended on subsidy could have been used to better the country’s seriously decayed and depressed infrastructure. Fayemi’s revelation has confirmed that most Nigerian leaders play politics with the welfare of the people for their selfish interests.