The Federal Government has stated that it will subsidize petroleum for the first six months of 2022.
Finance, Budget and National Planning Minister Mrs. Zainab Ahmed who disclosed this yesterday noted that the government currently has no plans to discontinue fuel subsidy.
She explained that subsidy payment would stop since complete deregulation of the downstream oil and gas sector will start by July 2022.
The minister stated this at a panel session during the 27th Nigerian Economic Summit (NES#27) in Abuja on Monday.
“In the 2022 budget, we only factored in subsidy for the first half of the year; the second half of the year, we are looking at complete deregulation of the sector, saving foreign exchange and potentially earning more from the oil and gas industry, “ Ahmed said.
At the event, Prof. Doyin Salami, chairman of the Economic Advisory Council (EAC), described subsidy payment as illegal. Also, Director-General, Debt Management Office(DMO) Patience Oniha told participants that the government has so far issued N1.5 trillion promissory notes to its creditors.
Salami said he had argued for a long time that subsidy needed to go since the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) made the payment illegal.
