Nigerians condemn fuel price increase
Danjuma Abdullahi
Press TV, Abuja
The Nigeria government increased the pump price of petrol from one hundred and forty-eight Naira to one hundred and fifty one naira per liter signifying a fifteen naira hike. With this increase, Nigerians are now paying about forty cents per liter of petrol instead of thirty-nine cents.
The government said it has finally deregulated the downstream sector of the petroleum industry and has removed all subsidies on oil products describing it as a necessary economic policy.
Some experts agree with the economic reasoning of the Nigerian government in removing the subsidy. Various civil society groups, the labor unions and Nigeria’s leading political party have condemned the new prices describing them as government’s insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians.
They said no government has enjoyed the support and goodwill of Nigerians like the Buhari administration, because Nigerians have endured pains and agony in the last five years thinking that there will be progress in the economy. Civil society groups said there is still widespread corruption and fiscal indiscipline in government spending, while Nigerians go through pain.
Some experts have suggested that the Nigerian government should fix its petroleum refineries, and stop the importation of refined petrol. They warned that this increase in the prices of petrol and electricity is likely to have a general rise in the prices of goods and services which will drive up inflation.
The Nigerian Labor Congress and Nigeria’s leading opposition party have said they will mobilize people to oppose the increase in prices. The labor unions described the timing as wrong in view of the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on the well-being of Nigerians.
However, Nigeria’s ruling party says the increase is in the interest of Nigerians and blames the current economic mess to sixteen years of bad governance of the opposition party.
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