NECA to FG: Remove oil subsidy, manage debt profile

Timothy Olawale, the director general of NECA,at a stakeholders’ meeting of manufacturers  in Lagos, said except fuel subsidy was removed, Nigerians would continue to suffer intermittent scarcity.

He said the fuel subsidy regime had succeeded in creating phony and emergency billionaires at the expense of millions of pauperised Nigerians.

The NECA boss decried the fuel subsidy regime as it had not contributed to growth of the nation or the people.

The NECA DG also decried increasing debt profile of the country, with huge percentage of the budget, over the last decade going to debt servicing.

He said borrowing could have been permissive given the state of the economy in 2015, but not to the high level it had turned out to be.

Olawale further said incurring debt for purposes of development was not in question, but that the over N24.39tn debt stocks taking over 20 per cent of annual national budget to service debt should be enough source of worry.

He, therefore, urged government to manage the rising debt profile, both at the states and federal levels, as this trend portended a gloomy future for the nation.