Don’t hold us responsible for petrol price hike – FG tells Nigerians
The Federal Government has denied responsibility for the latest petrol price hike in the country.
On Wednesday, October 9, 2024, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) jacked up the fuel pump price from N897 per litre to N1,030 in Abuja; from N855 to N998 in Lagos; N1, 070 in North-East; N1,025 in other South-West states; N1,045 in South-East and N1,075 in South-South.
This was the second time in one month the NNPCL had raised the petrol price.
Following weeks of scarcity and queues at filling stations across the country, the national oil company hiked petrol prices from about N600 to N855 per litre at its filling stations in early September.
It explained that the upwarp review was necessary to enable it to sustain its petrol supply due to a $6 billion debt owed to suppliers.
The development triggered wide reactions from Nigerians who called on President Bola Tinubu to work towards reverting to the old price of N600.
FG distances itself from latest Petrol price hike
Reacting to the new price regime, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the government should not be held responsible for the petrol price hike.
He explained that the decision was made by the NNPCL in response to the prevailing circumstances in the energy industry, stressing that the oil company didn’t act on any instruction from the Federal Government.
Idris further reiterated that the government can no longer fix prices of petroleum products, in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
The minister noted that with the end of the subsidy regime in May 2023, the NNPCL had only been paying differential to keep the price within range it had been, but it said it could no longer absorb the losses.
“The differential you’re seeing is a result of different factors. One of them is the crisis in the Middle East. There’s volatility in the market. Therefore, the prices of petroleum products are going up, consistent with what is happening with other operators in the industry globally. Secondly, NNPC cannot continue to absorb these losses for Nigeria because as a limited liability company, it would be operating at a loss,” he told Daily Trust.
FG begs Nigerians for understanding amid petrol price hike
The minister appealed to Nigerians to continue to endure and show understanding with the NNPCL and the government, assuring that the petrol price hike would ultimately dissipate in the long run.
Idris stated the government’s commitment to continue to invest savings accrued from subsidy removal to improve other critical sectors like education, healthcare, security, and infrastructure.
In conclusion, he said the initial government’s investments in Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) would also ameliorate the impact, even as more investments come into the initiative.
