by Azubuike Azikiwe

During the unveiling of the national identity card on Thursday, 28 August, in Abuja, President Jonathan stated that 60 per cent of the subsidy funds were being smuggled out of the country.

He said that one of the disadvantages of not having an efficient national identity management system is the abuse of the fuel subsidy scheme.

Jonathan said, “I’m particularly pleased with the National Identity Management Commission because a number of things we are supposed to do well as a nation, we are not doing well. And sometimes, we blame the government because of the failure of the system and the credibility of the process.

“If you take the issue of subsidy of transport; what we do is subsidising hydrocarbon, it does not go to the ordinary people. Government spends huge sums of money, hundreds of billions of naira every year in the budget, ask the National Assembly.”

Speaking further on the issue, Jonathan said the persons behind the subsidy funds theft, whom he did not name, are in the practice of using their stolen loot to induce to populace in revolting against the government.

He said, “We are thinking about how to subsidise the transportation system such as the person going to school, the person going to the market, the person moving from Lagos to Enugu or Lagos to Kano, and not paying subsidy 60 per cent of which will be smuggled out of the country.”

“And those who make the money will come and use that money to induce the people suffering to even riot against government.”

He added that the lack of an efficient national identity management system had made it difficult for Nigerians, especially those at the bottom of the pyramid, to benefit from government’s programmes.

Kolapo Olapoju