Sowore Pledges to Restore Fuel Subsidy If Elected President

(Omoyele Sowore. Photo by TheCable)

Presidential aspirant of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has pledged to restore fuel subsidy policies if elected to the presidency, contending that subsidy mechanisms themselves do not constitute inherent problems but rather that implementation approaches determine outcomes.

Sowore made this pronouncement during an interview addressing his economic strategy proposals for the nation preceding electoral contests.

When questioned regarding his position on fuel subsidy reinstatement, Sowore affirmed his commitment to the policy's restoration.

He argued that the Federal Government continues providing economic subsidy across multiple sectors but has merely renamed its policies rather than eliminating them.

He stated that the government lacks adequate domestic petroleum production capacity and therefore maintains effective subsidy arrangements whilst employing alternative terminology.

Sowore extended his subsidy argument to currency policy, claiming that the government similarly subsidises the naira exchange rate, a reality he characterised as widely unacknowledged.

He maintained that the naira's specific value relative to foreign currencies results from covert and systematic government intervention rather than market mechanisms.

Sowore attributed current economic contraction and currency depreciation directly to subsidy removal policies.

He contended that eliminating fuel subsidies precipitated measurable economic decline and naira deterioration coinciding with the policy shift.

He rejected the characterisation of subsidies as inherently detrimental policy mechanisms, asserting that no nation abstains from providing economic support to disadvantaged populations.

He argued that subsidy represents a legitimate governmental responsibility toward vulnerable citizens.

Sowore criticised Nigeria's intensifying poverty and nutritional insecurity, insisting the country must abandon policies generating economic dysfunction.

He concluded his remarks emphasising that aesthetic or rhetorical gestures cannot address citizens' material requirements.