GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ARE THE BIGGEST BENEFICIARIES OF  FUEL SUBSIDY---Study.
By Patience Ogbo
Government officials are the major beneficiaries of fuel subsidy in Nigeria. This revelation was made following a research conducted by the three Nonprofit organizations made up of independent, non-partisan, African-based network of researchers.
'Kemi Okenyodo the Executive Director of  CLEEN Foundation said  the research was organized by the CLEEN Foundation in collaboration with the Afrobarometer Network and the Center for Democratic Development CDD-Ghana. The result   was presented at a press briefing on May 22nd in Lagos State.
She said “The Afrobarometer (AB) is a comparative series of public opinion surveys that measure public attitudes toward democracy, governance, the economy, leadership, identity, and other related issues. The AB is an independent, non-partisan, African-based network of researchers. The first round of surveys took place in 1999-2001 in 12 countries.  The Network has conducted “Round 5” surveys in up to 35 countries including Nigeria during 2011-2012.

Two thousand four hundred (2,400) respondents were interviewed in their homes using personal face-to-face interview and multi-stage sampling technique.To ensure adequate representation of adult Nigerians population, probability sampling procedure was used to neutralize any known form of bias that may affect the findings of the study. Respondents were males and females, age 18 years and above.  Interviews were conducted throughout week days and weekends, to ensure that respondents of all works of life were included in the sample”.

Miss Okenyodo added that the purpose of Afrobarometer survey in Nigeria is to measure popular perspectives on the social, political, and economic environment. The goal is to give the public a voice in policy making processes by providing high-quality public opinion data to policy-makers, policy advocates and civil society organizations, academics, media, donors and investors, and ordinary Africans.“We went to the greatest length in quality control measures in order to ensure that the process of collecting and analyzing the data we are presenting today adhered to the highest possible international standard in reliability.
The field administration of the survey questionnaire in Nigeria was handled by the Practical Sampling International (PSI), a reputable social research firm that has worked with the CLEEN Foundation and the Afrobarometer network over the years and has conducted similar surveys for local and international organizations” .she said.
The Survey,   focused on five areas   which include election, rotation of Presidency, creation of more states, corruption and fuel subsidy.
“62% of Nigerians say government should maintain the fuel subsidy. The Nigeria public have the believe that creation of more States and Local government Areas will improve development of the country; 60% of Nigerians approve the rotation of Presidency across regions against 40% who say anyone should contest for the office of the presidency regardless of the region .While majority of Nigerians say the quality of the 2011 general election in Nigeria is better than 2007 national elections. Also, wide majority of Nigerians say government officials benefits most from fuel subsidies and most Nigerian residents say it is difficult to start-up a small or medium scale business in Nigeria”.  Miss Okenyodo said. Kathy Addy, the representative of Center for Democratic Development (CDD), Ghana stated that the research assists government in formulating policies that will prioritise the needs of the people.
“The first round of surveys took place in 1999-2001 in 12 countries. The Network is now conducting “Round 5” surveys in up to 35 countries including Algeria, Burundi, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Guinea, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Togo, Tunisia, Sierra Leone, and Sudan during 2011-2012.The goal is to give the public a voice in policy making processes by providing high-quality public opinion data to policy-makers, policy advocates and civil society organizations, academics, media, donors and investors, and ordinary Africans.”
Gbolahan Adeniran, the Senior Special Assistance to the Attorney General and Commissioner For Justice Lagos State applauded the researchers stating that the Lagos state government has benefitted immensely from the scientific researches which are  unbiased and geared towards meaniful developmental policies and implementation.
The Round 5 Core Funders include the DFID, SIDA, USAID and the Mo Ibrahim Foundation.