Nigerians who think they bade farewell to fuel queues long ago have been proven wrong following the recent return of long queues occasioned by scarcity of supply.
These are certainly not the best of times for middle and low-income Nigerians. From excruciating heat in the midst of epileptic power supply which has made sleeping at night a tall order, to skyrocketing cost of virtually all the essentials of life, Nigerians are passing through difficult times. Miserably, it appears to be getting worse by the day with no end in sight.
One of the sad realities is the fact that Nigeria is grappling with the worst cost of living crisis, the sort not experienced in the recent past. The hardship is exacerbated by the not well-thought-out economic reforms of President Bola Tinubu.
It is true that Tinubu inherited an economy in dire straits, struggling with debt, high unemployment, low oil output, a dubious fuel subsidy regime that drained government finances and power shortage that has crippled economic growth.
But in a move that shows how ill-prepared he was, not minding the fact that he campaigned on the ‘Emi Lokan’ slogan, President Tinubu flip-flopped on some key issues in the course of implementing some policies that are clearly devoid of the proverbial human face, thereby compounding the woes of most Nigerians.
Flawed policies
Most visible on the list of the president’s faulty economic reforms plans in line with the implementation of his Renewed Hope (many have rightly rechristened it Renewed Hopelessness) are fuel subsidy removal and floating of the naira, both of which were not carefully thought-out.
While fuel subsidy removal which came into full effect with the infamous ‘subsidy is gone’ declaration on May 29, 2023 has led to increase in cost of transportation, foodstuffs and other essentials, floating of the naira culminated in devaluation of the country’s currency by 40%.
Although the president and his handlers have been consistent in telling Nigerians and, indeed, the world that the removal of fuel subsidy was a difficult decision that was necessary for the country’s long-term benefits, I am tempted to ask: at what particular date is the long term so that we can know when to start expecting the benefits?
Fundamentally, President Tinubu needs to be reminded that there is hardly a justification for any economic policy that patently impoverishes the very people meant to benefit from it. In fact, it’s something of a misnomer to refer to any government initiative that drives a nation into rising inflation among other hardships as economic policy.
We now contend with a rise in headline inflation which currently stands at 31.70%, with Nigerians paying more for some commodities as their purchasing power continues to face more pressure.
Like most Nigerians, I strongly believe that President Tinubu’s economic policies are creating excruciating pain and engendering hopelessness for many Nigerians who are meant to face a sustained economic crisis.
Living with fuel queues
And while the citizens, especially those at the lower rung of the social ladder, are trying frantically hard to adjust, another fuel scarcity and long queues hit them like a bolt from the blue.
Even as you read this, Nigerians in Abuja and other parts of the country are still struggling to get petrol with long queues that have become a feature of major cities, as many filling stations remain closed owing to scarcity of the product.
The government removed the subsidy and what followed immediately was an intense cost of living which is creating misery for most Nigerians. The argument has been that the subsidy regime benefits a handful of powerful individuals and its removal will free up resources for the government to do more for the people.
We have been assured time and again that subsidy removal and total deregulation of the downstream sector will ensure an end to the era of long queues at the filling stations occasioned by fuel scarcity. The question now is with the subsidy out of the way, how come we still have to wait long hours in the queues to access fuel?
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) claimed the current scarcity which is gradually grounding activities in major cities of Lagos, Abuja and others across the country to a halt is caused by tightness in supply. It however noted that such has been addressed yet the queues still persist because there is insufficient supply.
Ironically, while NNPCL said there is enough stock in store, a source within the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) told LEADERSHIP that for two weeks many members of the association that placed orders were yet to get supplies.
While the long queues continue, with its attendant sufferings by Nigerians, one wonders what is really responsible for the current scarcity and when will the menace be over.
As should be expected, there has been a steep increase in the cost of transportation, further exacerbating the woes of medium and low-income Nigerians.
Workers bear the brunt
Although virtually all Nigerians in the lower rung of the social ladder are facing the current hardship, especially the worsening fuel scarcity crisis, middle and lower-level workers who have to commute to and from work places every day on public transport are the worst hit.
Aside from spending longer hours at the bus stops waiting for vehicles, they are forced to bear the brunt of a hike in transport fare, with a meager take-home pay that has stopped taking them home for a very long time.
It is indeed a double whammy for an average Nigerian worker who is struggling to make ends meet as he/she contends with the cost of basic foodstuffs that has multiplied while salaries remain static.
Indeed, this explains why pain and anguish were written all over the faces of average Nigerian workers who joined their counterparts all over the world to mark workers day yesterday.
While their peers in other climes observed the day in commemoration of good working conditions, Nigerian workers marked the day with lamentation because there is an aura of uncertainties over their demand for wage increase. The wait for the review of the national minimum wage appears to be a very long one, as the Tripartite National Minimum Wage Committee that is expected to negotiate the new salary has yet to submit its report.
Nonetheless, even as the workers wait in anticipation of a wage increase, inflation and rising cost of living have already made a mess of their proposed N350,000 minimum wage which is unrealistic in the first place.
In the whole of this, we are compelled to remind ourselves that we have to live with the reality of an obdurate fuel queues till, perhaps, the full coming on stream of the Dangote refinery. While we do that, let me use this opportunity to wish the Nigerian workers a belated Happy Workers’ Day.