A professor of Economics at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Sherrifdeen Tella, said government should not punish citizens.
He said, “It is not fair. Personally, I do not believe in subsidy because the subsidy they say they’re paying, they are just making money out of it. I think what is important is for us to have our refineries working, rather than we talking about adjusting prices because we are importing refined fuel.
“The government is supposed to bear the brunt of not doing what is right by producing refined fuel for us to buy. The government should have a way of punishing itself rather than punishing the citizens.
An economist and Senior Lecturer, Lagos Business School, Dr Bongo Adi, said it was a bad time for a fuel price hike.
According to Adi, Nigerians are facing social and economic challenges imposed on them by the government and an increase in the pump price of fuel will further drive more Nigerians into poverty and misery.
He said, “From all around, the Nigerian citizens are facing enormous risk to their livelihood, to their safety and of course to their health, owing to the coronavirus pandemic. The times have never been worse than it is right now in 2021.”
A former President, Association of National Accountants of Nigeria, Dr Sam Nzekwe, said the government should know the challenges facing Nigerians in the COVID-19 period as prices of goods and services had gone so high.
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