Dedicating eight pages to his recently launched book, ‘My Transition Hours’, former president Goodluck Jonathan has said the fuel subsidy protest showed that there are fewer politicians in the country who are honestly patriotic.

On January 1, 2012, Jonathan removed the fuel subsidy. Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala championed the decision but was met with strict resistance.

The Jonathan government argued that the removal of the heavy subsidy would free up funds for other public services, including
health and infrastructure projects, and that the liberalisation of the fuel industry would benefit the economy. They also argued that the primary beneficiaries of the subsidy were the wealthy, who used more fuel than the poor, and wholesalers who made a profit selling subsidised fuel out of the country.

Jonathan further talked about palliative measures to ensure the burden of the fuel subsidy does not adversely affect citizens but on January 9, 2012, the general strike began, with oil and gas workers joining the strike.

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On January 16, 2012, Jonathan responded to pressure by partially reinstating the fuel subsidy. The price of fuel fell to N97/litre, which was less than the N141 Naira after the subsidy was removed, but still quite a bit more than the original price of N65. The unions called off the strike in response to the move, and protests ended after that announcement.

But in his book, Jonathan said, “Politics in Nigeria and some other African nations is conducted like a primitive war,” previously stating that the senior politicians behaved in a manner that should concern everyone.

He wrote, “subsidy was consuming too much of our revenues,” but “State Governors of the main opposition party, some of whom were champions of the subsidy removal in our meetings on the matter, made a volte-face. They saw the subsidy removal as a very good opportunity to bring my government down and clear their path to power. Politics has a way of letting you know the inner recess of the human mind.” (pg 22)

He continued, “I recall vividly that at one of the meetings we had with the Governors at the Council Chambers, Mr Adams Oshiomhole, then Governor of Edo State, showed his displeasure towards his colleagues. To his credit, he was the only opposition Governor who stood by what we agreed…”

“The House of Representatives whose Speaker, then Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal was hobnobbing with the opposition.

“Speaker Tambuwal convened the House to sit on a Sunday just to condemn the deregulation. That was the first and only time in Nigeria’s political history that the Parliament sat on a Sunday.

“Unknown to the House, on that same day, while they were sitting, I was at Eagle Square to commission Mass Transit vehicles my administration purchased to cushion the effect of subsidy removal.” (pg 23)

He said he knew, with all the information he had gathered, that the protests were politically motivated and even when the present government understood the effects of deregulation, they “hired protesters against my government. This is quite disturbing. Does it mean that politicians cannot be patriotic? Must we play politics with issues of national development?”

Then he referenced Okonjo-Iweala’s book “Fighting Corruption is Dangerous: The Stories Behind the Headlines” to justify that patriotism is not an agendum on politicians list.

“She noted that the former Governor of Cross River State, Mr Donald Duke approached her and asked her not to serve in my government so that the government will not succeed.” (pg 25)

He ends the chapter with, “Until African politicians consider their countries’ interests first in whatever they do, the continent will continue to lag behind. Politics should be about the people and not about fighting to occupy offices.” (pg 26)