By our Reporter
Muhammad Sanusi II, Emir of Kano and former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, says scrapping petrol subsidy saved Nigeria from imminent bankruptcy.
Speaking at the second edition of the Kano International Poetry Festival on Saturday, Sanusi described the subsidy system as wasteful and unsustainable, noting that it drained government finances through oil price fluctuations, exchange rate pressures, transport costs, and refining expenses.
“Subsidy meant if petrol was N100, Nigerians paid N70 and government covered N30,” he explained. “But government went further, fixing petrol at N65 per litre regardless of global oil prices. Who paid the difference? Government. And that was always going to bankrupt Nigeria.”
He faulted past governments for neglecting local refineries while spending billions on subsidies that enriched foreign refineries and cost Nigerians jobs. According to him, those funds should have been invested in production rather than consumption.
The emir recalled warning as CBN governor in 2012 that the policy was like “a man running towards a ditch.” He said Nigeria eventually began borrowing to pay subsidies and later to service debts, making the arrangement unsustainable.
Sanusi stressed that subsidy removal should be seen not just as an economic reform but also as a chance to rebuild a more resilient and self-reliant nation.
