The 14th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, said former President Goodluck Jonathan suspended plans to remove Nigeria’s fuel subsidy in 2012 due to fears that Boko Haram might attack protesters, not because of public opposition.
Speaking at the Oxford Global Think Tank Leadership Conference on Tuesday, Sanusi — who was then Central Bank governor — said the subsidy system was a “naked hedge” that bankrupted the government by forcing it to borrow heavily to maintain fixed fuel prices.
He said Nigeria’s current economic crisis could have been less severe if the policy had been implemented in 2011. “If Nigerians had allowed the Jonathan government to remove the subsidy, the pain would have been far less than what we face today,” he said.
Sanusi added that Jonathan’s decision to only partially remove the subsidy was influenced by security concerns at the height of Boko Haram’s insurgency. “If one suicide bomber had attacked protesters and 200 people died, it would have gone beyond subsidy,” he said.
He also criticised Nigerian politicians for abandoning integrity and values in pursuit of wealth, lamenting that “many live like illiterates despite their education.”
