As Nigerians continue to groan under economic hardship as a result of the removal of subsidy on petroleum products, a former Minister of Finance, Dr. Kalu Idika Kalu has made it clear that government subsidies on essential items are not bad.
Dr Idika Kalu who served as finance minister from 1985 to 1986 and 1993 to 1994 pointed out that there is nothing wrong with subsidies as some countries like the US, Russia, and Argentina have them in place to help the people.
“I wrote about this back in the 80s. You see, subsidies were not liable to abuse, overuse, and being non-cost-effective by the sheer quantum of how it impacts the budget and the efficiency of the resource allocation. But as I also said, nothing is inherently negative about the introduction of subsidies. These are still happening in Russia, America, Argentina, France, and so on,” the former minister stated.
The renowned Economist noted that arguments against subsidies will not gain ground if proper management is ensured with targeted people being reached.
He emphasized that the management of subsidies and similar policies goes to the question of economic leadership.
Dr. Idika Kalu tasked the managers of the nation’s economy to work on the best model that will deliver development to the citizens.
According to him, the managers of the economy must be flexible to ensure the country is well-positioned to grow
