The federal government has said the total removal of of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) was done in the best interest of Nigerian masses.
Addressing State House correspondents after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, urged the citizens to exercise patience as the current hardship being experienced would soon be over.
He said government can’t continue to subsidise petroleum products hence the decision for the full deregulation of the sector.
“Look at it, a situation where diesel has been deregulated long ago, a situation where kerosene has been deregulated long ago, and these are the fuels the poorest people in Nigeria interact with more. Why do I say that? “If you want to transport food from the north to the south, it will be by trucks that are run by diesel, not with petrol.
Those trucks that transport food from the north to the south are usually run by diesel. “Kerosene is the preferred fuel at the lowest level of our society. These have been deregulated long ago. So, what is the problem with deregulating petrol, which is mostly used by the elite?“Let us be fair to this country, let us be fair to the poor people in this country.
“If we have deregulated what they were using, then there is actually no reason why we should continue to subsidize petrol. I feel so.”
