FG spent N634bn on kerosene subsidy in 3 years

The Federal Government spent N634 billion as subsidy on Dual Purpose Kerosene otherwise called kerosene in three years, the Chairman, House Committee on Downstream, Honourable Dakuku Peterside, revealedon Thursday in Abuja.

He spoke at a seminar organised by Downstream Group of Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

He said,  'As of today, the subsidy of kerosene is N110 per litre whereas the retail price is N50 per litre. This is as a result of the inefficiency of our government because we are not holding people responsible, we are not asking the right questions.

'In the year 2010, we spent N110,068,533,988 to subsidise kerosene. This is not the cost of kerosene but the cost of subsidising the product alone.

'In the 2011, it got worse. The Federal Government spent N324,089,961,319 on kerosene subsidy. In the year 2011 corruption was democratised in the downstream sector, in variance to 2012.

'There was also some investigation that shows that the downstream sector is entrenched in deep corruption in Nigeria. In 2012, although we are yet to reconcile this, but we have spent N200billion subsidising kerosene.'

According to him,  N634 billion used in subsidising kerosene was one third of what was spent in 2013 as capital budget.

He, however, blamed marketers for taking advantage of the loop-holes along the distribution chain.

'We are all businessmen who want to outsmart each other but in the case where NNPC is the sole importer of kerosene, the masses are paying for it.

'Because independent marketers, major marketers  and the rest are in charge of distribution and this is where the mother of all corruption, the mother of all fraud, the mother of everything bad begins and ends.

'Major marketers are Nigerians, Independent marketers are Nigerians but they maximise this opportunity and make profit for themselves at the expense of the masses,' he concluded.