By Babs Oyetoro and Cross Udo, with agency report
Nigerians yesterday received another shocker following the hike in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, from N568 and N617 per litre in Lagos and Abuja to N855 and N897 by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
The NNPLC’s decision to increase the pump price has created a high level of uncertainty, panic, and palpable fears among Nigerians, who have been at the receiving end since the prevailing artificial scarcity of the product all over the country.
A cross-section of Nigerians believe that the hike will further worsen their agonies.
ThisNigeria check revealed that earlier yesterday, most petrol stations in Lagos and Abuja deliberately hoarded the product, waiting for a directive to increase their pump prices.
In a bid to justify the increase in the product’s price, NNPLC issued a statement early this week stating that it was facing difficulties in sustaining the country’s fuel supply due to its indebtedness to petrol suppliers, which was causing financial strain on the company.
*New PMS pump price push more Nigerians into poverty – economist
An Economic Expert, Dr Sand Mba-Kalu says the fuel price hike by NNPCL from N617 per litre to N897 litre will push more Nigerians into poverty.
The expert said the sudden increase in PMS pump price by NNPCL was beyond a simple fuel price adjustment.
He said it would have a far-reaching impact on Nigeria’s private sector, trade, and the already suffering masses.
Mba-Kalu, the Executive Director of Africa International Trade and Commerce Research, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja.
NAN reports that NNPC Retail Management approved the upward review of the pump price effective September 3 amid economic hardship and persistent fuel scarcity.
NAN checks revealed that the NNPC retail stations had adjusted their pumps and totems (price boards) to reflect the new PMS price of N897 against N617 per liter, while independent marketers are selling between N930 and N1,200.
Mba-Kalu said that without government intervention, this price hike’s economic and social repercussions could be severe and long-lasting, pushing more people into poverty.
“We will witness the immediate high cost of transport, which will lead to higher food costs and inflation.
“In the long term, it could pose challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the agricultural sector,” the expert said.
He urged the Federal Government to acknowledge these implications and consider measures to reduce the impact, such as targeted incentives for energy efficiency, stopping wasteful spending, and reducing the cost of governance.
“Without such interventions, the economic and social repercussions of this price hike could be severe and long-lasting, pushing more people into poverty,” he warned.
Mr Chris Nzeh, a motorist who condemned the development, describing it as crazy, said what had been going on in Nigeria under the current government would only suffocate Nigerians.
“How do they want the average man to survive? We were told that fuel would be available everywhere in Nigeria with the removal of fuel subsidy, but today, it appears NNPC Ltd. is scamming Nigerians.
“They are the sole importer of petroleum, and they have refused to make refinery work, and you ask yourself what is going on in Nigeria. Nigerians should rise and save this country from collapse,” he said.
*Fuel pump price increase will hike food prices again– Commuters, traders
Some traders and commuters in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have frowned at the increase in the pump price of PMS by the NNPCL.
The commuters and traders who spoke to NAN in Abuja yesterday said the development would increase food prices, which were gradually crashing, and also the sufferings of the masses.
Mr Ignatius Ugwu, a civil servant, said the fuel pump price increase would further reduce workers’ purchasing power.
He said the increase would hike transportation fares, making it difficult for workers to resume work promptly and be productive.
Ugwu appealed to the Federal Government to pay workers minimum wage and introduce other palliatives that would help cushion the increase’s effect on the masses.
”This information is terrifying for a country like ours where people struggle to eat even one good meal daily. This increase will increase transport fares and other goods and services prices.
”The government should have been generous enough to put some things in place before this increase. They should have paid minimum wage and other arrears; they should have brought out buses to help the masses because things will go up whether we like it or not,” he said.
Mrs Antonia Ogbede, a housewife, said the increase would automatically raise food prices, which were gradually coming down.
Ogbede said that traders would take advantage of the fuel increase to raise the prices of their goods.
She said the spending burden would increase on her spouse, the family’s sole breadwinner.
“I went to the market today and saw some traders discussing the fuel increase. I heard one of them calling for some goods to be delivered to him by the company he buys from, and they told him that the price would increase by the end of the week.
“The trader ordered 100 cartons and said he would sell them at an increased price. The government should please help us before our breadwinners develop sicknesses due to too much spending,” she said.
Mrs Evelyn Otapu appealed to the Federal Government to consider its citizens before formulating some policies.
However, Mr Andy Kolapo, a driver, said that the increase would eliminate the fuel queues.
“We heard that they (NNPCL) have been planning to increase the fuel price to N1,000 per litre, which they have achieved. We hope this will end the recurring queues in fuel stations,” he said.
Independent marketers were selling between N1,000 and N1,200 per litre.
*I didn’t instruct NNPCL to fix price at N1000- Minister Lokpobiri
Meanwhile, the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said earlier yesterday that no directive was issued to the NNPCL to increase petroleum prices to N1,000.
Lokpobiri, in a statement issued yesterday by his Special Adviser, Media, and Communication, Nnemaka Okafor, said he did not direct the NNPCL or any other entity within the sector to manipulate prices.
“The Federal Government has been compelled to address the falsehood and malicious claims circulating on social media. We categorically condemn these claims as baseless, malicious, and a deliberate attempt to incite public discontent.
“We challenge anyone in possession of any evidence, written documents, audio, or video recordings that support these fabrications to make it public. Such a claim is entirely devoid of truth and should be recognised as an intentional effort to mislead the public,” he said.
He explained that NNPC Ltd. operates independently under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), with a fully empowered Board of Directors. The Ministry of Petroleum Resources does not and will not interfere in NNPCL’s internal decisions, including pricing matters.
“Any suggestion otherwise is not only incorrect but also reveals a profound misunderstanding of the deregulated nature of Nigeria’s petroleum sector,” he said.
*It’s betrayal of agreement, NLC alleges
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said that the recent hike in petrol pump prices is both traumatic and nightmarish.
The NLC also said it felt betrayed by the Federal Government following the agreement it reached during the minimum wage negotiation, where labour accepted N70,000 instead of its demand of N250,000 so that there would be no further increase.
In a statement signed by the NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, the labour movement called for reversal of the latest increase in the pump of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, across the country.
The statement titled “We feel betrayed” reads, “We are filled with a deep sense of betrayal as the federal government clandestinely increases the pump price of PMS. One of the reasons for accepting N70,000 as the national minimum wage was the understanding that the pump price of PMS would not be increased, even though we knew that N70,000 was not sufficient.
“We recall vividly when Mr President gave us the devil’s alternatives to choose from: either N250,000 as minimum wage (subject to the rise of the pump price between N1,500 and N2,000) or N70,000 (at old PMS rates). We opted for the latter because we could not accept further punishment for Nigerians.
“But here we are, barely one month after and with the government yet to commence payment of the new national minimum wage, confronted by a reality we cannot explain. It is both traumatic and nightmarish.
“Yet, when we told the government that its approach to resolving the fuel subsidy contradictions was patently faulty and would not last, its front-row cheerleaders sneered at us, saying we did not understand basic economics.
“But if truth be told, this act of betrayal is consistent with the character of this government. We recall the assurances the leadership of the National Assembly gave us on the 250 per cent tariff hike that it had been dealt with, and there was no need to openly engage the Minister of Power who was at that meeting.
“Instead of the promised reversal, the rate has since been jerked up further, putting more Nigerians and businesses in jeopardy.
“The combined effects of the government’s ferocious right-wing market policies brought Nigerians and Nigeria to their all-time low and led to the End-Hunger/End Bad Governance protests.
“Rather than make amends, the government arrested and hounded into detention some of those who took part and some of those who had nothing to do with these protests, charging them with criminal conspiracy, subversion, treasonable felony, terrorism financing and cybercrime with an intent to overthrow the government of President Tinubu.
“The police and other security agencies have since been on rampage terrorising the citizenry in pursuance of government’s agenda of muzzling lawful dissent.”
It said, “In brazen pursuit, they have defamed and libelled not a few individuals. They have gone as far as appropriating the statutory roles of the Ministry of Labour and Employment in resolving trade dispute matters and issues considered outside the jurisdiction of the security agencies.
“That the government is on a rampage in the face of stifling living conditions is an understatement, but we promise Nigerians that we at the Nigeria Labour Congress will not be cowed into submission.
“Together with civil society, we brought about this democracy when some of the actors in power today were conspiring with the military on how to perpetuate their hold on political power.
“When the State and the security forces picked on us in a hybrid war, we had our suspicions. We knew they were up to something sinister and needed to distract/divert our attention or possibly frighten or weaken us before they came out with it so that we would not have a robust response.
“Now that the chickens have come to roost, we were right in our suspicions. However, we want to let Nigerians know that the clandestine/surreptitious increase in the pump price of PMS is the first among the equally sinister policies the government has up its sleeve.
“We stand committed to the people and will neither be distracted nor intimidated by the government or its security agencies. We insist that government cannot criminalise protests or fundamental rights in the domain of the citizenry.
“Accordingly, we demand the immediate reversal of the latest increase in the pump of PMS across the country and the release of all those incarcerated or being prosecuted on the assumption of having participated in the recent protests.
“Halt the indiscriminate arrest and detention of citizens on trumped up charges; Reversal of the 250 per cent tariff hike in electricity; Stop to the hijack of the duties of the Ministry of Labour and Employment; End to policies that engender hunger and insecurity; Halt to government’s culture of terror, fear and lying.
“We are guided by our belief in our country and the need to secure and sustain its sovereignty, integrity, and welfare of the people.
“In the coming days, the appropriate organs of Congress will be meeting to make appropriate decisions that will be made public.”
