President Bola Tinubu’s administration kick-started with the immediate removal of fuel subsidies.
The policy came into place almost immediately after the president was sworn in after his famous’ fuel subsidy is gone’ statement during his inaugural speech at Eagles Square, Abuja.
However, the president has been meeting with key stakeholders to ensure minimal impact of the new policy on ordinary Nigerians.
The president has met the following individuals or groups during the week.
They include:
1) Labour union leadership
President Tinubu has met and interacted with various labour union leaderships under the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress. According to his aides, the president’s motive is to get the union leaders to back his policy and suspend any planned strike.
2) Mele Kyari
President Tinubu also met with Mele Kolo Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. Kyari announced the new subsidy regime and has been a regular caller at Aso Rock as part of further plans by the incumbent government to ensure all stakeholders are carried along.
3) State governors
This week, President Tinubu met with the 36 state governors as part of his post-subsidy-removal plans. Led by its Chairman, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State, the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) commended President Tinubu for tackling the fuel subsidy behemoth, promising to work with him to lessen the short-term impact of the decision.
4) Femi Falana
A strong voice in the country, the senior lawyer and activist met with the president in what looks like a plan by Tinubu to reach out to Nigeria’s human rights community. Falana has already been talking about the advantages of the policy to Nigerians in the long term.
5) Oil marketers
The Depot and Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria met with the president this week and supported the Federal Government’s decision on the fuel subsidy removal. The marketers were led to Aso Rock by the Ogun state governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, who was once a prominent member of the association.
