MINISTER of Petroleum Resources, Deziani Allison-Madueke, has said that there can be no other way out of the present subsidy impasse other than dialogue between the government and the labour, pointing out that the government is eager to end the suffering of Nigerians.
Fielding questions from State House correspondents in Abuja, on Thursday, she was, however, unable to say whether or not the government could restore subsidy and revert the pump price of fuel to N65 as demanded by the labour.
Describing the issue as a very sensitive one, the minister remarked that the Federal Government had always maintained that it was open to dialogue, saying that it was only through talking that the possibilities and impossibility could be determined.
According to her, "what is a possibility and what is not a possibility can only be determined when there is dialogue. Is that not so?
"Nigerians and all stakeholders should remain open to dialogue and should also trust and understand that no government would stand up and put itself through a sort of onslaught that we have been put through if they did not believe that what was to come is far better for the country than what has already passed. It is not possible."
She remarked that the government felt the pains of Nigerians, but conceived the removal of subsidy to provide gains for a wider spectrum of the people in a transparent way.
The minister said "right now, the government, the executive in particular, has said several times that we obviously have been feeling the pains that Nigerians have been feeling across the spectrum.
"The whole intent of subsidy as we have said from the beginning was to try and ensure that the gains from that sector got to a much wider spectrum of Nigerians in a manner that all Nigerians would actually gain from effectively for once openly and transparently.
"I think the government tried to put all the measures and indices in place to try and ensure that Nigerians don't only feel those gains as deregulation took effect, but that they would also see transparency in what was happening so that the government would not be the one holding the reign of the implementation for the benefit of the programme.
"Having said that, at the same time, obviously as government, it is very painful to see Nigerians going through the distress they have been going through. Both the distress directly, in terms of the strike and because other opportunists, have also joined the fray to incite certain issues and make things even worse for Nigerians.
"I think at all times, we have asked that the door for dialogue should remain open. Once a government says doors for dialogue should remain open, at no time did we shut that door. Once a government says that, the government is open for discussion," the minister said.
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