On 28th June, 2024 the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri while speaking during the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Yenagoa Law Week 2024 in Yenagoa, revealed that if the President of Nigeria, Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu had not announced the removal of the fuel subsidy during inauguration speech, Nigeria would have been like Venezuela.
According to THISDAYLIVE, the Nigerian Minister of Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri said "Whatever you see here is what happens everywhere in the world. As a government, President Bola Tinubu is doing whatever that is necessary to see how the country can support the most vulnerable people in society. For any society to be good, there will be times like this for a very bold decision for the interest and prosperity of this country. If the president had not taken that decision the day he was sworn in; Nigeria would have been like Venezuela. The government means well and we are doing whatever that is necessary. The lawyers like I said there have so many opportunities. Whatever happens here is not different from what happens in New York."
On the other hand, the President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan added that the current economic hardships facing the Federal Republic of Nigeria were not limited to the legal profession as it pervades all professions and sectors, including the high and low. He also added that needed collaborative efforts in finding solutions to the current economic hardship facing the country.