A coalition of youth groups on Tuesday restated its opposition to the removal of the subsidy on premium motor spirit commonly called petrol.
The groups, which included the National Association of Nigerian Students, the National Youth Council, Muslim Youths, the Youth Parliament and several others, made their position public at a town hall meeting, in Abuja.
The Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Dr. Ahmed Gulak, also attended the meeting.
A life member of NANS, Mr. Danjuma Sarki, who spoke on behalf of the youths, said the decision was ill-timed and betrayed an earlier commitment by President Goodluck Jonathan not to implement the policy before April 2012.
He said, “I am telling you today that a lot of Nigerians are suffering as a result of this. One, this is January, a lot of people have gone and spent what they have for the festivities. Some of them don’t have transport money or money to buy fuel to return to their duty posts.
“We are in January when parents will be paying school fees and the President promised us that this subsidy will be removed by April and all of the sudden, he removed it in January. Government must sit and listen to Nigerians on the street. We are in a democracy.”
Gulak, in his remarks, said the President was depending on the youth to spread the message of his transformation agenda to the grass roots.
Members of the National Youth Council of Nigeria and the National Association of Nigerian Students, and the Nigerian Youth League have berated the action of the Federal government to implement subsidy removal against the will of the masses.
The groups at a press conference at Lagos said there was need for the Federal Government to prove that the subsidy removal would benefit the suffering masses and create job opportunities.
The Chairman of the NYCN, Lagos Chapter, Mr. Taofeek Gbadebo said, “There is a huge trust deficit between the Government and the citizens, the reason for this is not farfetched as the envisaged gains for hiking the pump price of petroleum products in the country by past administrations did not materialise.”
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Why we opposed removal – Youths