Afolabi Orekoya, Media Aide to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Oladipupo Adebutu, has said the state has “absolutely nothing to show for” the gains it ought to have derived from the removal of fuel subsidy.
Orekoya stated this on Tuesday during an interview on frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 Ilese Ijebu, where he criticised the administration of Governor Dapo Abiodun over its handling of increased federal allocations following the removal of the petrol subsidy.
Responding to the argument that state governments should account for how they had spent the increased allocations arising from subsidy removal, Orekoya said Ogun State had little to show in terms of projects or economic relief.
He said: “Ogun has nothing, absolutely nothing to show for” the removal of subsidy, describing the situation as “capital flight from the subsidy removal.”
The media aide added that claims that the state had benefited from increased revenue were difficult to justify, arguing that residents, workers, retirees and businesses were yet to feel the impact of the additional resources available to the government.
“If you can say that the effect of the subsidy removal is being felt, it should even be felt by the people. What is the situation of our local governments? Which local government can you see and say that is actually doing what is meant to do in terms of provision of infrastructure, provision of services to the people at the grassroots? How then can somebody now come out and say that what they are doing is as a result of the funds that have been gained from the subsidy removal? Where are these projects that has meaning to the lives of the people? What economic impact has it made to the common people of Ogun State?” he lamented.
Orekoya questioned the economic impact of some of the projects being executed by the state government, asking whether the projects had translated into meaningful opportunities for welders, bricklayers, carpenters, farmers, companies and other residents.
He also challenged the timing of some projects being presented as benefits of the increased revenue following subsidy removal.
“Now this government have said they have done this project, they have done that project. What is the benefit to a common welder? What has been the benefit to a common bricklayer? What has been the benefit to a common carpenter in the State? These are the issues we are talking about. There is no economic improvement within the State. People are suffering, they cannot even afford to eat,” he said.
According to him, the Ogun State airport project could not be presented as a product of the revenue gains from subsidy removal because work on the project had started years before the policy was announced. He argued that the airport project began around 2020 and was initially expected to be delivered in 2021, while the petrol subsidy was removed in 2023.
“Number one, let’s start from when was the statement made or when was subsidy removed? That was 2023 when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu came to power. And he has actually claimed that that airport was going to be completed. He started it since 2020 and he claimed it was going to be delivered 2021”
Orekoya also criticised the state of roads across Ogun State and questioned the economic benefits residents were deriving from the government’s infrastructure spending.
The PDP aide also raised concerns about the price of petrol, noting that Nigerians were paying around N1,500 per litre despite the country being an oil-producing nation. He questioned why Nigeria continued to depend on foreign sources for petroleum products despite its status as an oil-producing country.
He said: “The fuel is now going to about 1,500 Naira per litre in the same country where we have bought fuel at N11 per litre. If we say that we have the effect of global issue on the pricing, what are we doing differently in a country that we are oil producing by ourselves? Why do we find ourselves in this situation? What have we done that has led us to this point? That we need to depend in other countries, other foreign international bodies before we can actually have our people enjoy what we are endowed with by God. So these are the issues that we are facing.”
Orekoya also rated the performance of the Abiodun-led administration at 2.5 out of 10, citing what he described as failures in workers’ welfare, local government administration, infrastructure and the general hardship confronting residents.
“Well, on a scale of 1 to 10, let me say I would give them 2.5 out of 10,” he said.
The PDP aide argued that governance should be measured by its direct impact on the people, insisting that government projects should translate into better living conditions and economic opportunities for residents.
He maintained that the 2027 election would give Ogun residents an opportunity to assess the performance of the incumbent administration and determine whether they wanted a continuation of the current approach or an alternative offered by the PDP.
