The immediate past governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike said President Bola Tinubu has demonstrated leadership as expected of a good leader, with his decision on the fuel subsidy removal.
Wike stated this while speaking in an interview with Channels Television on Tuesday.
He said, “He has shown leadership the first day he took oath of office. We need to tell ourselves the simple truth. It can’t be business as usual.
“See this problem, see this problem, see this problem, to start with, the fuel subsidy is gone. How many presidents can take that kind of decision? For me, that is leadership. For me, it shows that he is prepared for the job,” he added.
Wike further stated, “It’s a hard decision, but you have to take it. No good leader, who means well for his people that will begin to play politics.
“Since his campaign, he said it. He did not hide it. PDP presidential candidate said it, Labour Party presidential candidate said it. So, all of them know that this is the problem of this country.
“For me, I feel so happy that, Yes, we didn’t make a mistake. That is the kind of leadership that we want in this country. You see, everybody must not like what you have said or what you want to do.” he said.
Recall that Tinubu, during his inauguration, had declared the fuel subsidy gone.
The President’s declaration met with public outcry, particularly the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC and the Trade Union Congress, TUC.
Both the NLC and the TUC had called on their member unions to commence a nationwide strike on Wednesday after the government announced the removal of subsidy on petrol last week.
The removal of the subsidy led to an increase of almost 200 per cent in petrol prices nationwide.
The government has repeatedly said the subsidy on petrol was unsustainable due to the amount spent. Over N4 trillion was used to subsidise petrol last year, more than the government spent on education and healthcare combined.
However, critics of the fuel subsidy removal argue that it will further weaken the purchasing power of Nigerians and impoverish more citizens in a country where almost half of the population is poor.
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