Background
Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer, but still imports refined petrol. The country produces about 2 million barrels of crude oil daily which is exported to be refined abroad even though the country has 4 refineries with installed capacity of 445,000 bpd. Despite this, the country imports 250,000bpd of petroleum products into the country for sale to its citizens. The price of petrol has increased from 65 naira ($0.40; £0.26) per litre to at least 140 naira in filling stations and from 100 naira to at least 200 naira on the black market, from which many Nigerians buy their fuel. Due to years of mismanagement and systemic corruption, Nigeria does not have the capacity to refine crude oil into petrol and other fuels.
With the majority of Nigerians living on less than $2 per day, cheap petrol is viewed by many Nigerians as the only tangible benefit they receive from the state, hence the widespread disapproval. In addition, the economy is heavily reliant on crude oil (amongst other reasons,due to absence of essential infrastructure and services such as constant electricity). A consequence of this is that other seemingly unrelated items are tied to the price of fuel as has occured from previous price hikes. Due to the absence of stable electricity, gasoline generators are a common energy alternative for small businesses and residences.
With each hike, there is a commensurate rise in the cost of production of goods and services which would be transferred on to the consumers, leading to widespread inflation. Unfortunately, even when fuel price hikes were reversed in the past, the increase in the cost of goods and services (inflationary reaction) remained.
The removal of the subsidy took effect from Sunday, 1 January 2012 as announced by the Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA Reginald Stanley.
Protests
Protesters shut petrol stations and formed human barriers along motorways. Nigeria's main trade unions have also announced an indefinite strike and mass demonstrations from Monday, 9 of January 2012 unless the removal of a fuel subsidy is reversed. "We have the total backing of all Nigerian workers on this strike and mass protest," the Nigeria Labour Congress's Chris Uyot told the BBC
Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria Lamido Sanusi told the BBC the subsidy (which he said cost the government about $8bn last year) was "unsustainable". Several previous governments have tried to remove the subsidy but have backed down in the face of widespread public protests and reduced it instead.
While there is agreement in some quarters that the subsidy might eventually need to be removed, protesters believe the time is not right for such a drastic move as the average citizen's income is a pittance (Nigeria's monthly minimum wage was recently increased to 18,000 naira or around $110) and this is the only benefit the common man gets from the government. Based on this, it would be an unsound economic policy to use the prices charged by some foreign countries as a guide to setting the price in Nigeria as their GDP and other economic indices is not comparable to Nigeria's own, especially as Nigeria is a petroleum producing country and should therefore enjoy the benefit.
In addition, there is widespread indignation by the people that the government has not provided the basic amenities which they should have provided in the first place but rather mismanaged and enriched themselves with the available resources. They therefore believe that the additional income generated by the subsidy removal would be used to line the same corrupt leaders pockets.
It is claimed that the Government of Nigeria has always budgeted enough resources for the comfort of its officials, while disregarding that of the people. The supposed flagrant disregard for the people's welfare by removal of the fuel subsidy without putting in place programs to cushion the effect, coupled with the fact that they (government) have not led by example in sacrificing their huge salaries and allowances (which is further claimed to be the highest in the world), has necessitated the Occupy Nigeria protests.
In other quarters however, there is a belief that there was no fuel subsidy in the first place as a former Petroleum Minister, Professor Tam David-West,claimed that the previous pump price of 65 naira was actually higher than the cost price of 40.02 naira (including tax and other real costs) and the supposed subsidy was a bogus claim by the government.
There is yet another unsubstantiated claim in some quarters that the current travails in the country (including the Boko Haram security incidents) are a deliberate plot by a cabal who are set to make the country ungovernable for the current president due to their candidate in the last election, General Muhammadu Buhari, losing in the election. Proponents of this claim further state that PresidentGoodluck Jonathan is only a stooge who is powerless to make real decisions especially as members of this cabal are in the presidency itself and there might even be some foreign involvement from some Western powers. Other's claim that the cabal's intent is not to destabilize the political system (in which case they are separate from those sponsoring the Boko Haram security incidents), but to make profit at the expense of the masses, hence removal of the subsidy.
“The prices of everything will increase - transport, housing, school fees, food, etc. The common man will not be able to survive.” said Ganiat Fawehinmi, widow of the late human rights lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi.
“Jonathan has shown that he can’t be trusted,” Issa Aremu, NLC vice president, told demonstrators. “He said he was engaging in dialogue and all of a sudden, he increased the price!"
In the meantime however, protests are gathering momentum, with protests starting in Abuja and Lagos on the 2nd of January and the rest of the nation catching the grip on the second day as Kaduna, Kano, Ibadan took over. Continued protests surfaced at Ibadan, Ilorin, Kebbi, Gusau and a host of other states across the nation. Meanwhile, there were claims that some protesters were shot at by policemen in Kano at midnight. It was claimed that the uniformed men ambushed them while undergoing peaceful demonstrations and shot at the protesters. With this, the protesters reportedly dispersed only to reconvene at another venue as they vowed to pass the night protesting.
Celebrities like Banky W, Funmi Iyanda, Seun Kuti, Dede Mabiaku and others have been at the forefront of #OccupyLagos, as the protests have been referred to in the nation's former capital, Lagos.
Objectives
The protest aims to among other things:
- First, force the Nigerian government to return to the status quo and cause petrol to be sold at the previous rate of 65 naira per litre.
- The cost of maintaining public officials has skyrocketed over the past decade and this has to be stopped. The Nigerian President budgets N45 million for the purchase of kitchen and household equipment, while N293 million will be used for “refreshment”. The US president reportedly pays for most of his and his family’s dry-cleaning, meals and drinks. Barack Obama can only expect free meals at official dinners, especially when hosting foreign dignitaries. Nigerians will believe that government is merely taxing them to subsidise the life of ease and luxury of public officials.
- Get the government to provide improved infrastructure, eradicate corruption and nepotism.
- Get Nigerians to be more involved in the activities of their government.
- Weaken (and possibly eliminate) the existing "power cabal".
The table below shows the PMS price per litre compared to the minimum wage of other OPEC Countries.
| OPEC Member | PMS Price/Litre | Minimum Wage | Population | Production '000 bPD (2007) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venezuela | 3.61 Nigerian naira | 95,639 Nigerian naira | 29,105,632 | 2,340 | |
| Kuwait | 34.54 Nigerian naira | 161,461 Nigerian naira | 3,566,437 | 2,340 | |
| Saudi Arabia | 25.12 Nigerian naira | 99,237 Nigerian naira | 27,136,977 | 9,800 | |
| Iran | 102.05 Nigerian naira | 86,585 Nigerian naira | 75,330,000 | 3,700 | |
| Qatar | 34.54 Nigerian naira | 101,250 Nigerian naira | 1,696,563 | 810 | |
| UAE | 78.18 Nigerian naira | Example | 8,264,070 | 2,500 | |
| Algeria | 63.55 Nigerian naira | 55,957 Nigerian naira | 36,423,000 | 1,360 | |
| Libya | 26.69 Nigerian naira | 23,813 Nigerian naira | 5,670,688 | 1,650 | |
| Iraq | 59.66 Nigerian naira | 25,813 Nigerian naira | 30,399,572 | 1,481 | |
| Nigeria | 140-200 Nigerian naira | 18,000 Nigerian naira | 167 million | 2,250 |
Casualties
Muyideen Mustapha
Muyideen Mustapha, 23, is reportedly the first victim to lose his life in the ongoing nationwide protests over the lifting of petrol subsidies which is expected to result in higher prices for goods and services with a resultant increased hardship on the already suffering Nigerian citizens. The young Nigerian was shot in cold blood by the Nigerian Police Force in Ilorin, Kwara State on Tuesday, 3 January 2012. He was buried on Wednesday 4 January 2012, according to Islamic rites.
Abuja & London Protests
The Occupy Nigeria Movement plans another protest to hold at Eagle Square, Abuja for Friday, 6th January 2012 while another one hold simultaneous at the Nigerian Embassy in London. However, leaks from security agencies report of an order issued by the Government of Nigeria to the Mobile Police, advising them that the best way to stop the protests is to kill at least one of the protesters. Organizers of the peaceful protest are trying to call the attention of the whole world to the premeditated crime against humanity which the Government of Nigeria under President Goodluck Jonathan is about to perpetrate.
NLC/TUC
On Thursday, 5th January 2012, the Nigeria Labour Congress issued an ultimatum to the Federal Government promising to halt the economy of the country by Monday, 9th January 2012.
"We are shutting down the Nigerian airspace to local and international flights from Sunday night" said Denja Yakub of NLC.
"If a revolution will solve our problems, why not, what is going on already shows that our people are prepared for a revolution. "But we will not ask for a revolution that will bring back the military, they are a part of the problem." he added
Government Reaction
Following the emergency meeting of the Federal Executive Council, in Abuja, the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, told newsmen the government was not oblivious of the pains inflicted by Nigerians as a result of the new policy. In order to ameliorate those pains, he said the government had commenced a ‘massive mass transit scheme’ aimed at cushioning the effects of the subsidy removal on transportation. 1600 diesel powered mass transit vehicles, he claimed, would be distributed.
Curiously missing at the pivotal meeting were two controversial senior officials and pillars of the new policy: Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and Petroleum Resources Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is quoted as having said that she'll resign if the presidency goes back on its decision to remove the subsidy.
Media
It is claimed that the State media; Nigerian Television Authority NTA refuses to acknowledge the protest and is falsely reporting the entire Nigerian populace have accepted the increase in fuel price and are going about their businesses. It was further claimed that the Federal Government has reportedly ordered the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission to warn media houses to stop any broadcasts about the protests.
Channels Television and Galaxy Television, two local mediahouses in Lagos, covered the Lagos protests on January 3, 2012. There was also a report on the march in the Daily Times.
In addition, Facebook group pages were created to spur Nigerians globally against the fuel subsidy removal. One of them (called "Nationwide Anti-Fuel Subsidy Removal: Strategies & Protests")which was created on January 2, 2012 has over 15,000 members by January 7, 2012 and still growing. . Student websites in universities and blogs are reporting the Occupy Nigeria Protests and student representatives are sending live pictures of ongoing protests.
Twitter is also being extensively used as a connecting platform for the protesters across the nation, and the world.
Jonathan Administration
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It still is a mystery how the cost of subsidy shot up to 1.3 trillion naira in just one year of President Goodluck Jonathan's administration, especially since ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo's administration spent 300 billion Naira per year. When the Obasanjo government left power in 2007, the country was no longer in debt and the 30 billion dollar foreign debt that Obasanjo met when he came to power in 1999 was fully paid off. Today, under the administration of Jonathan, the country owes debt to the tune of 30 billion dollars and is still borrowing. Foreign reserves have been depleted from 80 billion dollars during the Obasanjo administration to 33 billion dollars under the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.
When the Obasanjo administration left power in 2007, 23 billion dollars was left in the Excess Crude Account after he built it up from nothing in 1999. Today, the account is empty because the money has been squandered and the account scrapped.
In the 2012 budget, President Jonathan allocated 1 billion Naira for his feeding and several other wasteful statehouse expenditure running into several million dollars. For instance, money allocated for feeding the presidential family was a reported 300 million naira.
Hope For The Future
For the first time in the history of Nigeria, Nigerians have come out with common voice tasking their government on good governance. The greatest bane of Nigeria's development might be attributed to deep division along ethnic and religious lines. Nigerian politicians have been exploiting this to gain position of power.
To a large extent, public offices are mainly allotted based on loyalty to people at the helm of affairs, ethnicity, and who will do the bidding of political leaders as against quality and suitability of a person for the post. The citizens are so gullible that what they care for is the name and region from which the office holder is from.
The consequence of this is nepotism and corruption that have become the hallmark of the country. Any attempt for establishing probity and accountability is largely viewed as an attack on the tribe, region and religion of the person.
The occupy Nigeria movement is giving hope to the end of all these. Nigerians have now realized that the have a common destiny and their destiny is in their hand. They are now making a turn around toward a common goal of good governance and judicious use of the oil resources that the country has. There is strong indication that Nigerians will from now on not be blinded by ethnic or religious affiliation.
Source : Wikipedia
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