Following the worsening effects of the removal of petrol subsidy, Nigerians have embraced several ingenious and sometimes crazy measures to survive.

For a people already impoverished during the immediate past administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, the development has further deepened their situation, thereby making everyone adopt survival strategies.

The policy, which saw the petrol price rise from N160 to N510 on May 29, 2023, resulted in an increment in prices of goods and services in a nation already battling 22.77 percent inflation.

Apart from depleting the purchasing power of the people, the country’s currency, which lost more than 200 percent of its value in the eight years of Buhari, has lost whatever is left of it.

Consequently, people now struggle to finance their basic needs given that prices have escalated more.

Food items, transportation, drugs and essential products among others have become unaffordable owing to the impact of petrol prices.

This is happening as income remains static, with N30,000 Minimum Wage and 37.7 percent unemployment rate, according to KPMG.

Across the states, some governors struggle to pay the Minimum Wage while others owe several months of salaries and pension arrears.

With the turn of events, the wage payable to the least paid federal civil servant could barely buy 50 liters of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, otherwise called petrol.

Difficult

Escalating energy costs also added more pain in a society that battles acute electricity challenges as more people and businesses now find it difficult to power their generator sets.

As of May this year, the nation had a grid electricity capacity of 13,014MW and transmission capacity of 8,100MW. But the capacity now hovers between 5,000 and 4,000 MW.

The World Bank had, in its Energy Progress Report, said about 92 million people live without electricity in Nigeria, making it the nation with the lowest access to power globally.

Now, the latest rise in the price of fuel from N510-N617 per liter on July 18, has increased hunger and anger in the land as more people face bankruptcy in a nation where the least-paid worker earns N30, 000.

To say that a bad situation has been worsened is, to say the least.

The latest price increment in fuel meant increased poverty, brought more pain, added to hyperinflation, diminished purchasing power, and expanded social inequality and misery.

Poverty trap

While 100 million Nigerians were already living in poverty before the beginning of the year, the World Bank, in June this year, said more than four million were pushed into the poverty trap in the first six months of 2023.

It warned that 7.1 million more were expected to become poor if the fallouts of fuel subsidy removal are not properly managed.

The Washington-based institution, in another report, Macro Poverty Outlook for Nigeria, released in April, projected that 13 million would fall below the national poverty line by 2025.

Though government has proposed sharing N8,000 to 12 million people for six months in a population of 200,000,000 to cushion the effects of petrol subsidy removal, the measure falls short of what is required to address the growing poverty level.

Apart from the consensus that government’s planned palliative measures would make no sense, Nigerians are already bearing the brunt of the subsidy removal.

Findings by Sunday Vanguard across the country reveal that many are worried and unsettled with the development, which has put pressure on households and Small and Medium Enterprises, SMEs.

Another source of uneasiness is the proposed 40 percent increase in electricity tariff, which may likely take effect any moment from now.

It was learnt the decision followed the drop in government subsidy to the electricity sector, which was estimated to have fallen by about 80 percent.

Given the hardship accompanying these policies Sunday Vanguard observed that citizens have embraced different survival measures, especially in the last two months.

Pressure

In most households and SMEs, things are no longer the same as the focus is now mainly on survival and nothing else.

Across geopolitical zones, many said they have no confidence in whatever palliative government is rolling out since none such worked in the past.

In Lagos, in most areas, especially on the mainland, this paper observed that many people no longer use their power-generating sets quite often and whenever they are using them, it’s no longer like in the past.

Cancer

A resident of FESTAC Town, Munachiso Nwike, said in his estate, people no longer use their generator sets until after 9: 30pm.

“It is not only in my estate, in many closes in FESTAC, people now wait until 9 or 10 pm before using their power generating sets. And the usage is for about three hours. It is understandable. How much are people earning for them to spend three thousand on four litres of fuel per night?’’ he said.

Another Lagosian resident on the Island, Mr. Emmanuel Nwainya, identified electricity tariff as his major headache.

He sounded crazy when he explained that to regulate the usage of power in his household to save cost, he told his children that usage of the microwave could lead to cancer while the air-conditioner triggers pneumonia.

According to Nwainya, “the situation if not properly managed could lead to bankruptcy. I am particularly worried about the frequency with which I recharge my prepaid meter. N20, 000 hardly lasts three weeks. I had to tell my children that excessive use of the microwave leads to cancer while one gets pneumonia if he excessively uses the air-conditioner. I had to tell them to see if we could minimise the usage of power.”

Air-condition

Another Lagos resident, Mr. Eziashi Ifeanyi, said since he had no control over the usage of power in his household, he often turned off the entire electricity from the central switch any time he felt his children were wasting power.

“For me, it’s survival first. Since I don’t want to have issues with my wife over how she uses electrical appliances at home, especially the air-conditioner, I usually turn off the power switch from the central control system. When I do that, they would assume it is the usual power failure.”

A Lagos-based hairdresser, Mrs. Tobore Odi, said: “Since the price increase affected everything, we have decided to buy only what we need to survive. For tomatoes which are now N7, 000 for a bucket of paint, we buy the quantity they sell for N2, 000 and augment with onions. I buy many onions now to add to the tomatoes we use for making stew. Without that, we can’t afford to spend N7, 000 on tomatoes. The paint bucket sold for N1, 500 before now.”

Mile 2, Alakija, CMS, Oshodi, Agege

Further checks in Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre reveal that many car owners have dropped their cars and embraced public transportation.

Areas like Mile 2, Alakija, CMS, Oshodi, Agege, Ojota, Berger and Opebi/Allen among others, hitherto known for heavy vehicular traffic, no longer experience traffic jam.

In the last two months, it’s rare to find a heavy presence of vehicles on such roads as many people have resorted to public transportation owing to the price of PMS.

Speaking in that regard, a civil servant, Mr. Jonah Bulus, whose office is located on Lagos Island, said: “Spending about N35, 000 to fuel your car weekly is not sustainable. I reside in Ikorodu.

“When this whole madness started, I thought I could be managing half a tank, which is about N16, 000, but it wasn’t possible. How much am I earning? I don’t own the house I reside in. I have other bills, which have also skyrocketed. What I use now is public transportation. I use BRT buses. Some of my friends even use ferry but I have a phobia of water transportation.’’

Sell cars

A politician and farmer in Ondo State, Zadok Akintoye, said:” To adjust, I am aware that some of my friends and associates have had to sell off one or more cars for low fuel-consuming vehicles. Some pre-plan their movement. “Citizens would look for cheaper options to meet their basic nutrient needs. The full impact of the policies you see now would become fully felt in about one year.

“My advice is for citizens to tame their expectations and prepare for the worst.”

Similarly, the Chairman of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, in Ondo State, Stephen Adewale, said: “Nigerians are adopting cost-cutting strategies to stay afloat because times are extremely tough.

“First, I noticed that more people now walk a considerable distance to get to work or their places of business to save money.

“You would note that streets and highways are no longer busy in the morning and evening. I have noticed that many of my acquaintances now opt to leave their cars at home and take commercial transit instead.

N80,000

“For instance, recently, I spent N80,000 refuelling my car as I travelled from Ondo to Ilorin. In contrast, my friend who travelled from Akure to Ilorin for the same occasion left his car at home and chose public transport, which cost him only N20,000. I have noticed that many employees now choose to spend the weekdays at work and return home on weekends.

“Businesses are also adjusting to the new reality. For example, my office had to lower the number of days workers would come to work to three days per week to cushion the effect of the fuel price increase on the staff.”

On his part, a public affairs analyst, Ayo Fadaka, said: “Life for Nigerians under the administration of President Bola Tinubu is hell.

“We simply jumped from the frying pan that Buhari’s era represented directly into fire.

“I consider it stupid to make our pump price at par with what is obtainable in the US or UK.

“The joke that government wants to distribute N8, 000 per household for 12 million Nigerians is another ploy to bleed our nation dry.

“Buhari may have done the same and got away with it, entrenching the same by this administration will not only be criminal but also provocative.”

In Ekiti State, a member of National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, Bernice Larryoboh, said:” I have adapted to the realities. I spend my income on essentials. I am sourcing more streams of income. We can only hope for a better Nigeria.”

A barber, Jawolusi Ayodeji, added: “This is not what President Tinubu promised us but I have found a way to survive. I have multiple sources of income and that has been helping me apart from my barbing shop.”

Sharing her survival strategy, a nurse, Oladipo Blessing, said: “At this crucial time when things are difficult in our nation, I survive by adjusting my lifestyle according to my income.

“I go out when necessary because of the hike in fuel price. I also put on my generator when it’s unavoidably needed.”

Also speaking to Sunday Vanguard in Abeokuta, Ogun State, a social worker, Mr. Niyi Rotimi , said:” I now trek from home to my office every morning. It is a distance of one kilometer. Whenever I have anywhere to go from the office, I use public transport.

The current situation has made me adjust my spending in many ways. At home, I have stopped using generator.’’

Aso Ebi

Chairman, Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, in Ogun State, Wale Olanrewaju, said: “With the current economic hardship in the country, Nigerians should not go beyond their limit. This is not the time to be spending on luxury. “We should do away with anything that is not that important to us at this crucial period. Things like Aso Ebi and other unnecessary things should be avoided.

“While buying food items, people should embrace bulk buying. The more you buy in bulk, the more you can bargain properly and the cheaper the things you buy.

“As much as possible, one should avoid going into debt, unless there is a clear capacity to repay it. If you must take loan, you have to use it on profitable ventures that will yield returns.’’

In Ibadan, Oyo State, an undergraduate at the University of Ibadan, Christiana Akande, said: “I have reduced the way I purchase food from food vendors. I now deliberately skip meals. I am spending more money to get less quantity and quality of food items. I buy more Garri and rice because Indomie Noodles is a luxury. Since my rent expired two months ago, I was forced to get a roommate to split the cost of the new apartment I just rented.’’

A civil servant, Mrs. Kemi Fasasi, added: “I always took Uber or Bolt to wherever I was going, but now I go around in public buses. In some cases, if the distance is not far, I walk instead of spending N500 or N800.

“The rate of suffering will increase. This will cause a surge in robbery cases and other criminal activities.’’

A business owner, Dupe Olagoke, said: “I went to the market to talk to customers to understand their pains, attitudes and behaviours in response to inflation. I realised that more customers were looking out for promotions and discounted sales.’’

In Abia State, residents expressed sadness over the latest hike in petrol pump price, lamenting that life has become uninspiring.

A commercial tricycle operator, Mr. Chuks Afamefula, said: “Since the increase in fuel price, passengers have decided to trek instead of taking commercial vehicles following the increase in transport fare.

“Passengers are no longer willing to take tricycles since we increased the transport fare because of the high cost of fuel.

“It may sound crazy but they now trek to their destinations no matter the distance. We are just surviving by God’s grace. If this continues, I don’t think many people will still be in the city by the end of the year”.

Similarly, a business centre owner at Niger by Awolowo Street, Mr Chimdi Ojirika, said:”On the first day of the fuel price hike, I couldn’t make any profit because I pitied my customers.

“Now, we type and print a page at N500. Patronage has decreased. Life has become unbearable. This situation is so bad. Government should immediately reverse the price if we must survive.”

In Taraba State, Sunday Vanguard observed that residents jettisoned personal cars while others have taken farming more seriously to survive hard times.

Those who spoke said they have abandoned their cars and opted for public transport, while others returned to full-time farming.

Grains

A resident, who identified himself as Peter Simon, said: “I now spend most of my time on the farm. With the current increase in prices of commodities, I need to ensure I grow enough grains for my family.’’

A businessman, Mr. Chukwudi Uzomah, said: “I have parked my car. I can’t continue buying fuel when the money could be channeled into providing basic needs for the family. I use my car on Sundays whenever we are going to worship God.’’

Similarly, a civil servant, Mr. Jonathan Yakubu, said:” I no longer use my cars often because I can’t cope with the price of fuel. I use the car occasionally. We are lucky that we don’t experience traffic gridlock here. My wife and I have agreed that we would only buy what we need. No more unnecessary expenses.’’

Three daughters

A Port Harcourt-based civil servant, Emmanuel Kingdom, said: “We weren’t surprised at the turn of events. The situation is unbearable. I no longer talk about fuel because I am not a fool to be spending all I earn on fuel. I have three daughters in tertiary institutions. If I don’t adjust, I will become bankrupt. I no longer have savings.’’

On his part, Junior Ibitimi, a teacher, said: “Immediately government announced the first increment, I told my wife we have to sit up to survive. Anything about burial or wedding Aso Ebi, we have canceled it. “Unnecessary trips, especially for burials, have been banned in this house. For now, we have to survive before anything else. I no longer pick the calls of certain people, especially from the village because I know what they would be looking for.’’

A Benin-based car dealer, Mr. Osahon Omoruyi, said: “I think our business is the worst affected. In the past, I sold cars monthly. In two weeks, I could count the number of Tokunbo cars I sold. “But now, we are in a deep mess. People no longer buy fairly used imported cars. They prefer Nigerian used cars, which are not even cheap. How fast things deteriorated is surprising.

“I have told my brother in Holland to stop sending cars because I am leaving this business. I want to relocate abroad because there are no options anymore in Nigeria.’’

Workers

To also survive the hard times, the College of Education Academic Staff Union, COEASU, directed its members to henceforth report to work for only two days a week.

The union, which explained that life has been unbearable with members, insisted that members can only work two days a week until the government meets its demand for salary adjustment.

The decision, according to a statement by COEASU National President, Smart Olugbeko, was taken at the extraordinary meeting of the national leadership of the union held on July 18, 2023.

According to the union, “The implementation of the removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government two months ago raised the price of a litre of petrol by 250%.

“This worsened the inflationary rate on the cost of transportation, food and other essential commodities.

“It impoverished the Nigerian people.

‘The national leadership of our great union at its extraordinary meeting had agreed to direct its members to go to work two days weekly until government yields to its demand of 200 percent increase in salary.’’ (Sunday Vanguard)

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