The Federal Government yesterday said no definite date has been fixed for the removal of petroleum subsidy.<\/span><\/p>\n This is in contrast to the position of Group Managing Director of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Austin Oniwon that subsidy ends when next year\u2019s budget goes into operation.<\/span><\/p>\n Information Minister Labaran Maku said the government is still discussing with various stakeholders and no effective take off date for the removal of subsidy.<\/span><\/p>\n Maku spoke yesterday at the end of yesterday\u2019s weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, the last for this year. With him was the Minister of State, Finance, Yerima Ngama.<\/span><\/p>\n Said Maku: \u201cNo take-off date has been announced. The truth of the matter is our country is in a very difficult economic situation. To continue to run Nigeria with one third of the budget to subsidise one product is absolutely a path to a greater difficulty for the economy. We have continued to talk about this because every sector we opened up has produced results.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cPeople, who are emotionally talking about it, are not actually addressing what we are saying. Let\u2019s take the media; before now, it was only NTA, until government deregulated broadcasting in the country. Before now, you could not set up a private radio station in this country or a television station. When the government deregulated the sector, what do we have today? We have private television stations that are now competing with NTA and FRCN. If government decided to control broadcasting in the country, all of you would have been out of job.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI know we all feel emotional about subsidy. If you look at the movement of economy all over the world, unless we don\u2019t want to develop this country and move forward. In broadcasting we have seen results. \u00a0So also is the case in cement production, banking, aviation, and telecommunication,\u201d the minister said.<\/span><\/p>\n Maku argued that the increase in the nation\u2019s domestic debt put at over N500 billion, has made the removal of petroleum subsidy inevitable.<\/span><\/p>\n He decried Nigeria\u2019s inability to benefit from the sector after 33 years of investments in the oil and gas.<\/span><\/p>\n Maku said Nigeria is the only country with our level of oil and gas resources that has failed to deregulate the sector and urged Nigerians to bear with the government over its decision to deregulate the sector.<\/span><\/p>\n