President Bola Tinubu has said that the change in the country’s economic climate has forced people to learn how to manage their resources better.
Speaking on Monday night during the first presidential chat with the media since he assumed office, Tinubu said Nigerians had learnt to dispense with wasteful lifestyles.
He cited the instance of one of his friends who used to drive five Rolls Royces but has now been downgraded to Honda Accord.
The president also said he did not regret removing the fuel subsidy.
“I don’t regret removing the fuel subsidy at all. That was the only option we had to stop the smugglers from continuing their illegal trade,” he said.
“Nigeria had become Father Christmas to some other West African countries due to the payment of fuel subsidy.
“We had to put a stop to it so that we can safeguard the future of our children and the unborn generations. I don’t regret removing the fuel subsidy at all.”
It would be recalled that Tinubu announced the cessation of subsidy in his inauguration address on May 29, 2023, which immediately shot up fuel prices at the filling stations even though the subsidy payment by the outgoing government was to expire in the following two months.
Some filling stations stopped selling fuel immediately causing fuel shortages. The filling stations that sold fuel hiked the price from N200 to N600 before it rose to N1,200 earlier this year.
The hike immediately impacted transportation costs, which in turn, impacted the prices of food items, shooting them to the roof.
Watch Tinubu speak here.
