MARKETERS KICK AGAINST REDUCTION IN PETROL PUMP PRICE
Following the decision of the Federal Government to reduce petrol pump price from N168.44 to N162, fuel marketers have said it is not possible to sell the product at the assigned price amid the current market situations.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, on behalf of the Federal Government, had on Tuesday, December 8, announced the price reduction would lead to a cut of about N5 per litre of petrol.
He however said that the adjustment takes effect from Monday, December 14, 2020.
Ngige told newsmen at the end of a meeting with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) which began at 9pm on Monday and ended at 1:30am on Tuesday that the reduction does not affect the deregulation of the petroleum sector.
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Reacting to the development, officials of the marketers’ associations on Tuesday said the price decrease had not been communicated to them, adding that they only read media reports that the Government had reached an agreement with the organised labour to reduce petrol price by about N5 per litre.
The National Operation Controller, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Mike Osatuyi, said that given the recent increase in global oil prices and the devaluation of the naira, “petrol price of N162 cannot work, except we are going back to subsidy.”
He said:“The government said it had deregulated; so, it is not possible to sell petrol at N162 on December 14. If you ask anybody now in the industry, they will tell you the price at which they can sell is about N170 to N180.
“The minister of labour does not have the power to determine the price of petrol. Even the President can only do that if we go back to subsidy.”
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The National President, Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, Dr Billy Gillis-Harry, said the interference by the Government in petrol pricing had continued to defeat the purpose of deregulation.
Recall that the Federal Government had in September said that major and independent marketers are free to fix the pump price of the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) known as petrol.
Abdulkadir Saidu, Executive Secretary of Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) during a press briefing in Abuja, on Tuesday, September 9, noted that the Government would no longer issue price-fixing guidelines for the sale of petrol at filling stations.
Read Also: PETROL: NO MORE PRICE BAND, MARKETERS CAN FIX PRICES- FG
Reacting to the breach in agreement by the Federal Government, Gillis-Harry said marketers had lost millions of naira as a result of the frequent price adjustments.
“We have no circular to confirm that price adjustment, and as far as we are concerned, we cannot say it will be implemented until we get an official communication about it,” he added.
The Federal Government removed petrol subsidy in March 2020 after reducing the pump price of petrol to N125 per litre from N145 on the back of the sharp drop in crude oil prices. The price reduction lasted till June.
Nigerians have experienced hikes in the pump prices of petrol four times in the past five months, rising from N121.50–N123.50 per litre in June to N140.80-N143.80 in July, N148-N150 in August, N158-N162 in September and N163-N170 in November.
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