THE EFFECT OF #FUELSUBSIDYSCAM ON MY FINANCES
The other day, I went to an internet cafe in Area 3 Garki Abuja, to print my resume. As I removed my laptop and made to connect its charger in the socket, the girl who runs the place told me what would eventually be my shocker: “if you plug your laptop, na N400 you go pay because na generator we dey use!” My hand froze with the charger in it as she continued, “…fuel don cost now…” and then, just then, I realised “The cost of the fuel subsidy scam to my country, Nigeria.”
I was new in town as I had just come in from Zaria a week before. The harsh reality of the cost of the fuel subsidy scam had just stared me provocatively in the face and I could only wonder in bewilderment as to how a natural resource that should ordinarily have been a blessing, turn around to be the root cause of so much pain, anger and unimaginable corruption in the land. Of course, every desire I had to charge my ‘dead’ laptop had now vanished into thin air as I had to pay instead, to browse, to retrieve a copy of my resume from my email.
I left the cafe and boarded a bus heading towards Wuse enroute Maitama. At Wuse, I flagged a taxi cab and as it pulled over to the kerb, I told the driver where I was going at Maitama and he shouted, ‘N500.’ ‘N300’ I replied back, and yet again, received a stark reminder of the cost of the fuel subsidy scam to my country: “even when them never increase price of fuel, we no dey carry am like that!” At this point, I did a mental calculation: N999,000,000x128x24= Fuel Subsidy Scam!
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This beautifully crafted piece is unique in more ways than one: First, it demystifies the complexity of the argument relating to the subsidy cram. Second, it highlights, with brutal simplicity, the inextricable connection between corruption in government and the existential condition of the ordinary man on the street. And third, it drives home the message with very brief, basic and easily comprehensible analogies. Not suprisingly, such a compendious treatise can only emanate from someone I would describe as “a reasoned, enterprising intellectual in whom I am well pleased; please, let the panel listen to him!
This is a wonderful piece. It tells the story of all the youths on the subsidy scam. Its simplicity and everyday example proved that we are all going to end up as a victim, and that is if we are not a victim already. Paying more for daily needs like water (drinking), transport, food etc simply because some people decided to go crazy with corruption and the regulators believed it is the common people that should be punished in their place.
????†’s simply represent the harsh reality of our daily lifes. You will really be dumbfounded when ??????o??? ??? survey on the effect of the fuel subsidy scam itself on the general populist.
This is fantastic..it explain the suffering and smilling of the ordinary man on the street…and also gives nigerians a deep sense of how the microscopic few that has pilotted the affairs of our oil and gas industry are selfish and wicked…going by the just concluded AD-HOC committee investigative pannel report. Am not suprised at all that such is coming from you AYODELE DANIEL..you’ve got it bro. The ripple effect of the subsidy scam is wat you saw in the cafe where you were asked to pay N400 just to plug your laptop to d electricity to enable you retrive your CV. You call it a shocker but its the reality.
You hv just hit the nail on the head by espousing the stark reality we are faced with.
Like Folarin rightly stated we are paying for the sins of some crooks who are friends of the govt.
Need I remind them that this act of impunity wont last forever….
Bravo bro…..
This is one big challenge confronting us since that unholy policy of subsidy removal by Jonathan.
Democracy that is suppose to be the govt of the people is ironically now being made the govt of the few cabals in Nigeria’s parlance….
How sad!!!
As much as it is lucid n lurid,it equally brings to the fore the nature n character of man.it reveals that man is opportunistic.as bitter as is d ‘subsidy pills’,we hijack d process n make life more difficult n worse.inflation,perhaps was supose to rise by a certain percent,we added to it n its ‘subsidy’.i must say,thanks for ds peice n i invite every one to read it…suitable for enlistment,if u ask me.
This is the reality at hand. But GEJ in defence of the subsidy says there won’t be infation. It is pathetic. Its a vicious circle, that, he didn’t. get it .
You’ve said it all. I pray and hope many Nigerians gets to read this so that those who supported the removal of fuel subsidy, will now understand the problem we all are faced with. Am not surprised this is coming from you AY. I believe you will go places with this. Nice1 bro.
Every day for d thief,1 day for d owner. Dats wot I believe