OIL SUBSIDY REMOVAL/FUEL PRICE HIKE

• Fast Lane To Socio-political Catastrophes
• Say No To Fuel Subsidy Removal!
• No to Fuel Price Hike!
• For 48 Hour Warning General Strike and Mass Protest Now!!

By Segun Sango

Come January 2012, the Jonathan government has announced that its decision to remove the so-called subsidy on fuel prices will be implemented. Going by past experience and especially within the atmosphere of virtual socio-political and economic paralysis which presently dominates the country, the implementation of this well-worn but counter-productive, pro-rich, anti-growth/anti-poor measure would only provoke deeper catastrophic consequences for the country’s working masses and Nigeria itself as a corporate entity.

According to President Jonathan and his economic advisers and backers, the government has been spending far too much money on subsidizing the actual prices of fuel products and that unless this is immediately stopped, the prevailing multi-faceted socio-economic problems ravaging Nigeria will only get worse. Specifically, the PPRA has come forward to claim that a whopping sum of N3.7 trillion was spent on fuel subsidy between year 2006 and now. Consequently, government spokespersons and their imperialist backers are now arguing that once the fuel subsidy is ended, this kind of whopping sum can be channeled to other crucial needs of the economy and society. Will government’s prognosis work out in this respect?

Going by past brutal experiences, it can be safely concluded that this ferocious, pro-rich, anti-poor and anti-growth economic recipe, will only worsen the overall state of the economy and the living standard of the vast majority of Nigerians. For Nigeria, the petroleum sector constitutes the most singular important economic propellant. It fetches government about 80% of its total revenues.

From bitter past experiences, once the price of fuel is hiked, the cost of transportation, education, housing and general services will go up. Presently, due to lack of stable publicly generated electricity, the cost of goods and services in Nigeria remain very highly prohibitive to such an extent that many companies have been forced to relocate to neighbouring West African countries and overseas where the costs of running businesses are comparatively cheaper. This has, in the past 10 years, lead to mass retrenchment of millions of workers and total deprivation of job opportunities in Nigeria itself. This was partly the unpalatable result of previous hikes of fuel price. Against this background, the offer by government to use the money saved through the process of fuel subsidy withdrawal or hike of fuel price, to enhance the growth of the economy is to say the least very dubious and totally untenable. Going by the private sector, profit-first disposition of the ruling elites in power, any additional incomes that come to the government would end up being looted and shared through awards of bogus and highly inflated contracts that would have little or no bearing on the development of the economy and the living standard of the people.

Few years ago, when Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was previously Minister of Finance under former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government, the Nigerian ruling elites gifted the global financial sharks, led by the Paris Club, a whopping sum of about $18 billion, almost at once, under the slogan of making Nigeria debt free. Their central promise then was based on the deliberate lie that the huge sums of money being paid annually on servicing and repayment of Nigeria’s massive external debt would henceforth be channeled to revive the then prevailing economic paralysis. However, as the DSM and some other public commentators argued at the time, the reckless financial brigandage being promoted as economic wizardry actually plunged Nigeria’s economy and the living standard of its poorest sections into greater distress.

Under the prevailing economic difficulties, the implementation of the proposed fuel subsidy withdrawal or fuel price hike would only drive the overall economy and the living standards of ordinary Nigerians into a factual dead end.

HOW TO PROPERLY FIGHT AND PERMANENTLY END THIS VICIOUS CIRCLE

Therefore, the opposition to government’s so called policy of fuel subsidy removal or, bluntly put, fuel price hike by both the NLC and TUC was absolutely correct from the onset and must be fully supported by the entire working masses and the youths who in fact must play direct, leading roles in the struggle to fight and permanently defeat all the ruling class’s anti-poor policies and their governments. However, based on the fact that the NLC and the working masses in general have in the past, gone on several general strikes and mass protests against this particular anti-poor policy, the DSM would therefore like to reiterate the scientific socialist measures and tactics that the working masses need to employ in order to wage a successful struggle against this perennial anti-growth, anti-poor policy.

First and foremost, labour leaders and working class activists must recognize all neo-liberal policies as the central pivot of the capitalist strategy to ensure that the wealth and resources of society become the exclusive property of a few rich millionaires and billionaires. Secondly, this policy must not be seen as an isolated phenomenon but as part of myriad of measures and policies in other areas of the economy all seeking to benefit a few rich millionaires and billionaires at the expense of the vast majority of ordinary citizens.

It is the same disposition to enrich a few rich at the expense of the majority that is the central driving force behind the plans to sell the public electricity to private capitalist corporations and individuals. It is this same policy that runs through the commercialization and privatization of education and healthcare in the country leading to massive destruction of public investment in these sectors and the proliferation of high fee charging private educational institutions and hospitals only for those that have sufficient money. Roads and waterways development on which the capitalists, in the past used to spend public money on as an inescapable pre-condition for economic development and social well-being, have now been consigned to private profiteers under the guise of Public Private Partnership (PPP), with the disastrous consequences of bad and broken roads in most part of the country and within cities. It is this same profit-first consideration that has made it impossible for Nigeria to use its vast and abundant human and natural resources in such a planned and democratic manner with a view to provide basic decent living for every Nigerian. This is why millions of youths and tens of thousands of graduates of tertiary institutions permanently remain without jobs while 80% of Nigerians live on less than $2 per day.

In mid-November the Statistician-General of the Federation, Yomi Kale, reported that, despite claims of economic growth the National Bureau of Statistics believed that ” ‘The unemployment rate…in the first half of 2011 increased to 23.9 per cent…This represents an increase of 1.8 million additional unemployed people between December 2010 and June 2011.’

“The Bureau attributed the rise in the ranks of the nation’s unemployed to fresh entrants to the job market and worker layoffs across all sectors of the economy in the course of the year…

Stressing that the inflationary trend is “slightly on the rise”, Kale said: ‘The biggest contributors to the rise in consumer inflation in the preceding month were high cost of kerosene and diesel’ Consumer inflation rose to 10.5 per cent year-on-year in October, up from 10.3 per cent in the previous month.” (The Guardian, November 17, 2011)

Against the background of this disastrous, and worsening situation the NLC and the TUC leaders and the majority of the working masses elements must of necessity be able to proffer a complete scientific, economic and political alternative to those being offered by the pro-capitalist politicians and ruling elites and at the same time prepare to wage protracted mass struggles to defeat not only pro-rich anti-poor policies, but as well the capitalist anti-poor governments. This, in the DSM’s opinion, is the most realistic way of permanently ending incessant hike of fuel prices as well as other government anti-poor policies. Unfortunately however, the NLC and the TUC leaders that are currently voicing opposition to this pro-rich, anti-poor policy have not been sufficiently articulating a coherent and specific economic and political policies and strategies through which the capitalist government and all its anti-poor policies can be permanently defeated.

VICIOUS CIRCLE

The NLC in particular has led several industrial general strikes and mass protests against the current anti-poor policy of fuel price hike in the past eleven years. To a certain extent, the TUC has also played roles in the above mentioned struggles.

In one of its frequent but most comprehensive statements so far against the proposed policy, the position of the NLC was articulated by its president, Abdulwahed Omar, recently to the media as reported by the Nation newspaper of October 27, 2011.

The position of the TUC in this respect was articulated by the Rivers State Chairman of the TUC, Mr. Chika Onuegbu, while recently speaking with The Punch in Port Harcourt (Punch, November 3, 2011).

In our opinion, the NLC was correct in its October 26 statement to demand that “our oil resources” be used for the benefit of the people, but as we in the DSM have always argued, this state of affair can only be possible under a government of workers’ and the poor peoples’ representatives that is committed to utilizing not only oil but all other major resources, under public ownership and workers’ democratic control and management, with the central goal of meeting the basic needs and aspirations of all and not just that of a few rich/billionaires as is the case under the prevailing unjust capitalist system.

The NLC leadership was equally right to reject government’s excuse that it could not fight the so-called cabal manipulating and profiteering from oil prices in the name of fuel subsidy because it is not a military government. It is however wrong to simply argue that “what we need is a democratic process of bringing culprits before a court of competent jurisdiction and dispensing justice”. Apart from seeking to invent a non-existing “democratic” garment on Nigeria’s notoriously bureaucratic, corrupt and expensive judicial process, this response completely evades the challenge thrown to labour and the working masses by government’s admission of failure to combat this fundamental, central socio-economic disease.

Yes, we agree with the NLC leadership that the government’s position in this respect is nothing but a rationalization or justification of high profile criminality. However, as we in the DSM had always argued, this criminality can only be properly brought to an end under a genuine workers and poor government where the major sectors of the economy are run through democratic control and management of working people themselves.

When reminded that previous hike of fuel prices had never yielded the much chronicled development, government’s spokesperson, the Petroleum Minister, Mrs. Deziani Allinson-Madueke revealed that government would this time around, constitute a “Think Thank” to manage the expected resources to be generated through stoppage of the so-called oil subsidy. The NLC rightly argued in response: “The reality is that despite the trillions of naira budgeted annually for these basic needs, the roads remain in a deplorable state, public maintenance is absent, mass transportation is non-existent, youths are abandoned as are the public hospitals leading to high mother and child mortality rates”. Therefore for us in the DSM, the central issue remains how to permanently bring to an end this process of colossal wastage and lootings of public resources at the expense of the well-being of the economy and the living standard of the people.

On this claim: “the proceeds of the subsidy removal will be managed by Nigerians of integrity”, the NLC leaders retorted wittingly: “who are those managing the national economy and the annual budgets, if they are not Nigerians of integrity, why not handover the economy to such Nigerians”? Finally, the NLC leaders declared that the Jonathan’s administration decision to go ahead with the removal of the so-called fuel subsidy will displease 99% of the population and stated that, “If government disproves this, it should subject its fuel subsidy removal to a referendum”.

Doubtlessly, these are witty responses but they totally shy away from facing the basic reality. If government, even indirectly admits that its affairs had hitherto being run by Nigerians without integrity, the right response by Labour is to demand the immediate resignation of the government and offer its own preparedness to run government with democratically elected representatives of the working masses and not just to passively ask that government be handed over to “Nigerians of integrity”.

Against the false claims by government’s spokespersons that the proposed fuel subsidy withdrawal is in the best interest of the economy and Nigerians, Labour in fact, should be frontally demanding the convocation of a truly democratic and elected Sovereign National Conference (SNC) dominated by the representative of the working masses and the poor not only to debate and decide the current policy of subsidy withdrawal, which Jonathan never mentioned during the recent presidential election, but also a host of other socio-political issues like the issue of whether Nigeria should continue to remain as a corporate entity, and if yes as we in the DSM would advocate, and how its diverse nationalities and religious groups should co-exist peacefully and with mutual democratic respect.

The TUC leadership on their part, “urge the Federal Government to consider the concerns of various stakeholders as well as come up with how to grow the local refining capacity such that within the next five years, we will meet locally all our domestic demand for refined petroleum products in Nigeria, and such that within the next seven years, we will be exporting refined petroleum products to neighbouring African countries”.

The TUC leaders like their NLC counterparts have not for a moment pondered over why none of the nation’s refineries are working optimally and why, of all the oil exporting producing countries, only Nigeria does not have sufficient functional refineries and rely on importation of refined oil products for its domestic usage. In the face of daunting, monumental failure of past hikes of fuel prices on the overall economic activities and peoples living standard, the TUC leaders are pledging to support government subsidy withdrawal policy once “government can demonstrate very clearly how the proposed policy of fuel subsidy removal will reduce poverty and unemployment in Nigeria”! The TUC also in what is no more than an understatement expressed the “fear that sharing the funds accruing from the removal of oil subsidy among the three tiers of government could trigger another round of corruption and inefficiency”.

To say the least, the TUC position quoted above reflect a ponderous perplexity bothering on ideological bankruptcy. On the one hand, the TUC knows very well that any additional funds accruing to the capitalist elite in power at all levels would only “trigger another round of corruption and inefficiency” but at the same time, the TUC leaders are expecting these same corrupt elements to bring the so-called cabals to book and also adequately check their nefarious activities. This unseemly position can only come out from elements appearing to seek change but lack the vision and preparedness to confront the unjust status quo!

BREAKING THE VICIOUS CIRCLE

Propositions like those criticized above would only make things worse than they are presently. This of course does not remove an inch the fact that both the NLC and TUC have done so much in fighting this purely pro-rich, anti-people policy. However, the fact that government has continually brought up this policy despite its well known debilitating effects on the real economic indices and peoples’ living standards (and despite the constant opposition of labour through the numerous general strikes and mass protests,) clearly and sharply underline the point that there is no way to stop this kind of anti-economic growth and anti-poor policy within the framework of capitalism. To effectively fight and defeat this kind of policy requires a clean break with the present rotten, self-centered system that inflicts mass misery in the midst of super and inexhaustible abundance. And here lies the crux of the problem with the contemporary labour/trade union leaders and movements. To justify their positions before the masses, the NLC and TUC leaders have always put forward or support one form of demand or the other desired by their members and ordinary citizens within the framework of an utopian perspective of winning permanent improvement in the living standard of the masses without changing the current “profit-first” system of capitalism.

However, in reality a decisive fight and defeat of government anti-poor policy of fuel subsidy withdrawal is only possible within the framework of a working class revolutionary economic and political alternative. This is because the kind of reckless manipulations, profiteering and racketeering which have made it impossible for a major oil producer and exporter like Nigeria to be able to guarantee sufficient and affordable refined oil products for its economy and citizens are the same kind of problems that prevail in all sectors of the society.

The NLC and TUC leaders and pro-workers’ activists should immediately come out with concrete and practical proposals and measures that would galvanise the entire working masses and youths to rise up in arms to fight and defeat the current anti-poor policies and ultimately, the anti-poor government. The NLC and TUC leaders have been making noise about their opposition to the impending fuel subsidy removal or fuel prices hike. Now is the time to take the debate and agitation to the rank and file workers and ordinary Nigerians in their various communities and trades through mass meetings, leafleting and rallies.

The DSM proposes that the NLC and TUC leaders should immediately flag off mobilization and preparation for a 48-hour warning general strike to call on government to immediately and unequivocally abandon its decision to remove the so-called fuel subsidy by January 2012, immediately implement the recently promulgated N18,000 monthly salary to workers across the country, by both public and private sectors, without a single retrenchment. Labour should, at the same time, spearhead an immediate end to privatization of public institutions like electricity, roads construction, education and the health care system. Labour’s demand must also include demands for massive public expenditure on job creations, housing, health care, education etc with a view to mop up the mountains of unemployment and chronic poverty that have rendered virtually half of the country’s population jobless and hopeless. Labour should also insist that proper conditions of employment be given to those lucky enough to have jobs and say total no to casualisation of labour.

Jonathan and the entire ruling elite through their myopic, pro-rich, anti-poor economic and political policies are driving Nigeria to a total dead end. According to media reports, Nigeria is currently experiencing the highest level of military mobilization outside eras of military rule, to barely maintain peace in many states of the federation, owing to escalation of ethno-religious violence, including those being perpetrated by Boko Haram, a right wing Islamic fundamentalist group. As we write, the government has deployed soldiers to occupy offices and installations of the PHCN across the country with an evident goal of forcibly defeating the resistance of the electricity workers to its plan to sell the nation’s electricity company to private, money launders. The overall socio-political implications of all these pro-rich, anti-poor policies and conducts may rapidly begin to evoke among sections of Nigerians a bad situation wherein the military known as the unrepentant enemies of the working people are being promoted as messiahs.

This of course demands that the trade union movement and its leaders come up with a coherent and comprehensive agenda of struggle that is hinged on the masses ultimately winning political power away from the current self-serving capitalist looters and thieves. Labour is facing a key test. This type of situation cannot continue indefinitely. If labour does not offer a way out of the country’s mess, other forces, military or otherwise, will try to step in. If the Labour leaders limit themselves to radical words and no action they will open the way to defeat unless a vibrant movement of activists from below can help transform Labour into a fighting socialist force. Only through this kind of perspective can ensure that the current agitations against the impending policy of fuel price hike can be successful and permanently won.

For full version of this article has been earlier published on this website