The Tinubu government has come under severe criticism once more from opposition parties and labour unions following the increase in the price of petrol by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
Petrol prices increased on Tuesday to between N617 and N630 per litre in numerous Nigerian cities, up from N500 to N537 previously.
Mele Kyari, GCEO of NNPCL, justified the new rates by blaming market factors. “They are just prices depending on the market realities. This is the meaning of making sure that the market regulates itself. Prices will go up and sometimes they will come down.”
Nigerians have expressed outrage on social media in the last 24 hours since the news broke, which follows NBS reports showing inflation hit an all-time high of 22.79% in June.
The Peoples Democratic Party stated on Wednesday calling the fuel price increase “provocative” and “extortionate.”
The PDP criticised the president’s handling of the nation’s economy since announcing the end of fuel subsidies two months ago.
“Even with the removal of subsidy on petroleum products, with a deft, transparent and innovative management of resources, economic potentials, national comparative advantage and expanded value chain in refining capacity, fuel should not sell for more than N150 per litre in Nigeria,” the party’s spokesperson, Debo Ologunagba, wrote in a statement on Wednesday.
According to the PDP, the naira’s continued depreciation is a result of Tinubu’s poor economic decisions, as citizens lose their livelihoods, and several families struggle to afford their basic needs due to an increase in the price of food, medication and other essential goods and services.
Before President Tinubu removed the fuel subsidy, which he described as the “elephant that would bring the country to its knees,” fuel sold for N198 per litre, but fuel marketers have now warned that the price could rise to N700 per litre.
The Nigeria Labour Congress has made clear that it will no longer enable the Nigerian government’s “impunity and imperiousness” in making economic decisions without embracing democratic tenets that require stakeholder engagement on weighty state matters.
The Congress then condemned the Nigerian government’s proposal to provide N8,000 monthly for six months to 12 million households as a palliative measure to cushion the impact of the subsidy removal.
“The proposal to pay N8,000 to each of the so-called 12 million poorest Nigerian households for a period of six months insults our collective intelligence and makes a mockery of our patience and abiding faith in social dialogue which the government may have alluded to albeit pretentiously,” Joe Ajaero, the Congress’ president noted in a statement.
The Nigeria Labour Congress was previously engaged in negotiations with the federal government to review the minimum wage but has now threatened to reconsider its engagement if the fuel hike is not handled.
“NLC would not want to continue to be part of the usual charade of committees with outcomes that are never implemented. We do not want to provide a cover for the government to get away with the hardship it has imposed on the people,” Mr Ajaero added.
