By Linus Aleke
The National Oil and Gas Suppliers Association of Nigeria (NOGASA), has hinted Nigerians of imminent price hikes of petroleum products, stressing that the continued crash of Naira against the dollar, is affecting the price of the product.
The association also called on Federal Government to fix the local refineries, to curtail the continued rise of pump prices in the country.
Briefing newsmen in Abuja, the National President of NOGASA,
Mr. Benneth Korie, urged President Tinubu, to urgently address the issue of foreign exchange to stabilize the price of the products.
Mr. Korie decried the recent introduction of tax on diesel, lamenting that the move has forced the price of the product to skyrocket to N950, from its initial price of N600.
He noted that if the government does not move fast to checkmate the rising dollar rate, the fuel pump price may continue to rise.
Korie said: “The tax the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) introduced on diesel has affected the diesel market in Nigeria. Today, as we speak, diesel in the market is going from N920 to N950. Before the talk about the tax diesel was going for N600 or thereabouts.
“Another issue is the dollar rate, we suggest the federal government should move into action, and call on the Bueruau De Chance (BDCs) agents, and Bank Chiefs on a table. The only way out is to call the BDCs, Bank’s Managing Directors, and let them sit with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, who will tell them a uniform price for the dollar. Don’tfstoremore than this price. This is because the way the dollar rate is going will destroy a lot of things for us. Again, I will talk about the refinery which is a major problem in Nigeria. There is a need that Nigeria to deploy local content, let me use this example, we have good engineers, get them together, and let them go to these refineries, for how many years now we have been talking about refineries, it is human beings that built these refineries and we have engineers in this country. Let them go there, find out the problem and fix it. Even though we know they are old, they can fix them. If the Nigerian government takes this matter seriously, I believe Nigerian engineers can fix the refineries. We have machines in Nigeria that can assist them to get these things fixed. Instead of depending on foreigners and spending billions of naira every year without achieving anything. If the refineries were there, even with the subsidy removal, I believe that would have cushioned the effect of the removal”
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On the issue of the dilapidated roads, the NOGASA Chief Executive said, the state of the road infrastructure is adversely affecting the life span of trucks of members, stressing “Every day we are importing trucks but they don’t last”.
According to him, there is a limit to what the mechanics can fix when the roads are so bad and trucks and cars get bad so very frequently.
He expressed optimism that once the road infrastructure is improved upon and made motorable, the rate of truck importation would drastically reduce, and the dollars used for this importation would be saved for other things.
Korie said NOGASA have recorded a loss of lives, and trucks, and truck drivers have been kidnapped due to bad roads, especially along the East-West road axis.
