“How Subsidy Removal Saved Nigeria,” Sanusi Speaks

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

The 16th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, and former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has revealed that the removal of the petrol subsidy saved Nigeria from bankruptcy.

Sanusi spoke on Saturday, September 13, at the second edition of the Kano International Poetry Festival (KAPFEST), organised by the Poetic Wednesdays Initiative.

As reported by The Cable, the monarch said the subsidy regime was unsustainable, noting that it placed the burden of fluctuating global oil prices, exchange rates, transportation costs and refining expenses entirely on government coffers.

“Subsidy was simply the government saying, ‘If the price of petrol is N100, Nigerians will pay N70 and I will pay N30,” he said.

“But beyond that, the government also placed a hedge—fixing petrol at N65 per litre irrespective of whether the international price of oil was $10 or $100 per barrel. Who paid the difference? The government. And this was always going to bankrupt Nigeria.”

Sanusi faulted successive administrations for failing to repair local refineries, saying subsidies only enriched foreign refineries while exporting Nigerian jobs.

“If you look at the billions and billions spent on subsidy and imagine that money invested in refineries, Nigeria would not be where it is today,” he said.

“I have nothing against subsidies if you are subsidising production. My objection has always been subsidy on consumption.”

The emir recalled that during his tenure as CBN governor in 2012, he had warned against continuing with subsidies, likening Nigeria’s path to “a man running towards a ditch”.

“Government revenue could no longer carry the subsidy burden. At some point, we began borrowing to pay the subsidy, then borrowing to service the debt. It became unsustainable. That is exactly what I said would happen, and this is where we are,” he added.

He added that the policy should be seen not only as an economic adjustment but also as an opportunity to rebuild a stronger, self-reliant nation.

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I knew what poverty is when I became Emir – Sanusi

In another development, Legit.ng reported that Sanusi Lamido Sanusi II, stirred a fresh controversy in the polity as he speaks about economic hardship in Nigeria.

At an event in Abuja on Saturday, May 31, 2025, Sanusi II said he understood poverty when he became Kano emir .

The former CBN governor, who also stated that many elites in the country do not have an understanding of what poverty is, urged economic managers to inculcate the virtues of empathy.

Source: Legit.ng