The Presidency has described as untrue reports doing the rounds, that it was planning to pull off import duties on food and drugs.
The response came on the heels of two fiscal policy documents being wildly quoted to have been from the presidency, that it was making a provision for N5.4trn petrol subsidy for 2024, and that it would also stop importers from paying duties on food and drugs, to cushion the effect of current economic hardship on the masses.
However, a statement sent to newsmen by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Thursday, explained that although one of the documents titled, Inflation Reduction and Price Stability (Fiscal Policy Measure etc) Order 2024, was being shared as if it were an executive order signed by President Bola Tinubu, it was still at the proposal stage.
He added that the other document, a 65-page draft document with the title “Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan (ASAP), containing suggestions on how to improve the Nigerian economy, is also still in the draft stage, and was just received by President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday.
“We urge the public and the media to disregard the two documents and cease further discussions on them. None is an approved official document of the Federal Government of Nigeria. They are all policy proposals that are still subject to review at the highest level of government. Indeed, one has ‘draft’ clearly written on it” the statement added.
The Presidency quoted Edun when he said “It is important to understand that policymaking is an iterative process involving multiple drafts and discussions before any document is finalised,” assuring the public that the official position on the documents will be made available after comprehensive reviews and approvals are completed.
Online reports had alleged that the Federal Government may have set in motion a plan to suspend the payment of import duties on staple food items, drugs, and other essential items for an initial period of six months as a measure to curb inflation.
The report which quoted one of the two documents, “Inflation Reduction and Price Stability (Fiscal Policy Measures) Order 2024,” expected to have been signed in April, did not include the signature of President Tinubu,
The document was also said to have included plans to waive levies on fertilisers, poultry feed, flour, and grains.
Food prices have surged, with food inflation reaching 40.5 per cent.
Among the hardest-hit commodities is rice, a dietary staple. In the past year alone, rice prices have skyrocketed by 169 per cent, reaching nearly N90,000 per bag in March and April. This sharp increase in food costs is placing immense strain on households across the country, exacerbating an already fragile economy.
