Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, says the savings from the removal of fuel subsidy since 2023 are grossly inadequate to meet Nigeria’s development needs.
Oyedele made this statement on Wednesday at a one-day capacity-building training on the Nigeria Tax Act (2025) for members of the State House Press Corps in Abuja.
He emphasized that Nigeria must embrace comprehensive tax reforms to reposition the economy for sustainable growth.
Oyedele further explained that the country’s total annual budgetary outlay — covering the federal government, 36 states, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and all 774 local government areas is less than $50 billion, a figure he described as insufficient for a nation of more than 200 million people.
“Even if you remove corruption and waste completely, the resources at our disposal are not enough to transform Nigeria. Subsidy savings alone cannot deliver the level of infrastructure and services required. Our fiscal space is simply too small,” he said.
According to him, the subsidy regime had left the federation on the brink of collapse, with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPC, not only withholding remittances but also pledging future crude production as collateral to pay for petrol imports.