Stan Okenwa
17 November 2009
A recent study carried out by the World Bank has revealed that most African countries, including Nigeria pay more than two time the actual price value of social amenities despite weak infrastructural base of nations.
The bank said weak infrastructural base hardly supports any meaningful economic policy. The research finding on Africa is coming at the heat of the controversy trailing Nigeria government's position to force the pill of deregulation of the down stream oil sector on Nigerians.
Before now, there has been speculations that the removal of oil subsidy currently generating mixed reactions across the country may have been a script handed down to the nation's leaders by the World Bank.
But analysts are further confused on the latest survey carried out by the bank on Africa which reveals that residents of the continent pay more for the services it gets from governments.
The double payment, according to the World Bank is evident on costs of transportation, water and sanitation, shelter, food and other essential commodities that can only be cheap within an era of good governance and purposeful leadership.
Observers in Nigeria say the hostile introduction of deregulation of the down stream oil sector by the apex government in the glaring lack of functional infrastructural base can only make citizens poorer and further weaken the targeted speed of economic consolidation.
However, reacting to the latest position of the apex government on the policy, head of Research and Development, Africa Environmental & Economic Peace Mission (AEEPM), Dr. Chinedu Ntigbu told Daily Champion in an interview in Lagos that the level of rush by the government without the provision of enabling environments capable of cushioning the fallouts of the policy implementation "did not only leave much to be desired but suggests that someone is under pressure from the outside".
Earlier last month, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief and a senior staff of the Organisation of Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC) at different fora argued that the best way to ambush the excess use of petroleum products in developing economies which they claim cause climate change is for their governments to remove subsidies placed on the products.
But according to the AEEPM expert, government seems to be hiding under the old story of investing the alleged huge fund spent on subsidy on infrastructure development to sale the dummy.
He further submitted that "introducing deregulation in an economy that is wobbling with banks crisis and weak infrastructure base within an approaching election year cannot be a better economic development policy at this point in time".
Beyond the rhetoric, he continued, "the claim by government and IMF that subsidy encourages unguided use of products thereby causing climate change and cannot be true because apart from the fact that gas is still flared in Nigeria, removal of subsidy will eat deep into Nigeria's forest which remains our product of value and bargain in the fight to get sizeable slice of choice the facility during the up coming world climate summit in Copenhagen in December.
Dr. Ntigbu argued that the IMF and their cronies who are aware of the influence of Nigeria to push for better deals for Africa and indeed the rest developing nations at the summit based on the quantum of carbon sink in the country.
Continuing, the environmental activist noted that "in the face of a prevailing deregulation before the Copenhagen summit, Nigeria's hands will be tied during bargain at the summit".
In his views, "deregulation will further deplete the fragile forest resources as majority Nigerians who are poor would revert to fuel wood as source of cooking".
Daily Champion recalls that before the recent announcement to kick-off the policy next month, the issue of deregulation of the down stream petroleum sector which government claims is to allow market forces determine prices had been severally trailed by discordant voices.
Key opposition to the deal which has been the organised labour group and the civil societies have based their position on poor logistics on the part of the government and the prevailing economic uncertainties holding sway in the country.
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