According to Edun, the government has not made any provision in the budget for subsidy payment.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun has again stated that the federal government is not paying for petrol subsidy.
He stated this on Thursday during a media briefing in Abuja.
According to him, since President Bola Tinubu declared an end to the fuel subsidy regime on May 29, 2023, the government has not made any provision in the budget for subsidy payment and has not made any subsidy payment outside the budget as well.
“Mr President said on May 29 that subsidy is gone. Subsidy is gone. We do not have a line in the budget for subsidy payment. We do not have payments being made whether in the budget or out by the federal government of Nigeria or even the federation directly for subsidy,” Edun said.
He submitted that what has been happening is a situation where the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is carrying the burden of the spike in exchange rate variation as part of its responsibility to ensure the availability of petrol in the local market.
The position of the Minister is coming at a time the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria recently said, the landing cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, was ₦1,117/litre as of July 16, 2024.
The figure was based on the prevailing rate of ₦1,500 per one US dollar in the nation’s exchange market.
The claim by the marketers is yet to be rebuffed by the federal government.