The house of representatives has asked the federal government to introduce palliative measures on Nigerians to cushion the effects of the petrol subsidy removal.
The request came after Sani Madaki, a congressman from Kano’s Dala federal district, adopted a resolution of urgent public interest during Wednesday’s plenary session.
While introducing the motion, Madaki voiced alarm over the abrupt removal of the gasoline subsidy, which he claimed was putting Nigerians through difficult times.
He claimed that Nigerians are finding it difficult to make ends meet due to both the high price of gasoline and the ensuing rise in food prices.
He claimed that some proactive state governors have put in place temporary measures to manage the situation in response to the financial burden that the subsidy elimination will have on public employees.
He said, “The house is aware of a presidential directive to put palliative measures in place to ameliorate the impact of subsidy removal on Nigerians. But the federal government is yet to implement the palliative.”
“The house is worried that since the removal of the subsidy, several protests have been recorded as citizens accused the government of being insensitive to their plight.”
Following discussion, the house instructed the committee on labor, employment, and productivity, once it was established, to oversee compliance and submit a report within two weeks for additional legislative action.
The former administration claimed in April that it had obtained $800 million from the World Bank for its post-subsidy palliative plan.
The fund will be dispersed to 10 million homes regarded to be the most vulnerable, according to Zainab Ahmed, the then-minister of finance.
