Kudos, Knocks Trail Fuel Price Cut; Marketers Fail To Comply

…PMS shouldn’t be more than N70 — APC, labour

An avalanche of reactions ensued, yesterday, to Sunday’s announcement of a reduction in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS or petrol, by the Federal Government, with the All Progressives Congress (APC), yesterday, accusing the Federal Government of “making a show out of deceit by its so-called fuel price reduction.”

Vanguard reports although the various units of the organized labour commended the Federal Government for the reduction, it however noted that the level of slash was below expectations.

The APC in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Lai Mohammed, said, “The 10.3 per cent slash in the price of petrol, (from N97 to N87), is a mere tokenism at a time the price of crude oil has crashed by about 60 per cent.”

New PPPRA template

Meanwhile, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, further fixed the Ex-Depot price of petrol at N77.66 per litre, contrary to the information on its website, which put the Expected Open Market Price at N97.90 per litre.

The Executive Secretary of PPPRA, Mr. Farouk Ahmed, explained in a statement issued last night in Abuja that, the development is on account of announcement of a downward review of the pump-price of petrol from N97 to N87per litre by the government.

Counting their losses

Indeed, the price slash had come as a big surprise to all, particularly the marketers, who are now counting their losses from their stock pile.

Vanguard reliably gathered that the marketers and petroleum depot operators were taken by surprise by the announcement, resulting in a hastily arranged meeting with stakeholders in Abuja yesterday.

The word was mum among attendants at the meeting, which kicked off by 12 noon and lasted for many hours behind closed doors, with no operator willing to speak on the agenda for the meeting.

However, those who confided in Vanguard said the losses are better imagined, as many had borrowed to pile up stock, seeing as the government had not responded in any way since the crude oil market crash last year.

Assessment of new price

By his assessment, APC’s Mohammed said the pump price of a litre of fuel should not exceed N70, meaning that at N87 per litre, the Federal Government is forcing Nigerians to still subsidise the massive corruption in the oil sector by N17 for every litre of fuel.

He further called on the federal government to immediately slash the price of petrol to N70 per litre and the prices of diesel and kerosene to nothing more than N90 per litre each way.

He said, “When crude oil was selling at US$100 per barrel, the landing cost of PMS without subsidy was N125 per litre. Now that the oil price has crashed to about US$44 per barrel, landing cost without subsidy is about N65 per litre. The same goes for diesel which should not sell for more than N90 per litre.”

Also speaking, Mallam Garba Shehu, Director of Media and Publicity of the APC Presidential Campaign, described the slash in the pump price of petrol by the federal government as, a panicky political measure which falls far too short of the people’s expectation and contrary to the 50 per cent relief suggested by the Buhari Team.

In a statement in Abuja on Monday, Shehu said that “The Jonathan-led PDP government is beginning to listen to public outcry about bad governance, extortion and exploitation of the Nigerian masses in the oil sector where billions of naira are daily being ripped off the pockets of the common men and women through inaccurate pump prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene, despite the dwindling world market prices of these products.”

In his reaction, Chairman, Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Smart Adeyemi, commended the Federal Government for its decision to reduce the pump price.

Adeyemi stated that the reduction showed that the government of President Goodluck Jonathan is sensitive to the plight as well as the wishes and aspirations of the people.

According to him, “This is the first time the government voluntarily, without strikes and protests reduced pump price of petroleum products. This is a step in the right direction and it will surely ginger socio-economic activities.

Similarly, Mr David Adonri, Chief Executive Officer, Highcap Securities Limited, said the reduction is a welcome development, advising however, that the Federal Government should deregulate the sector and allow the forces of supply and demand to determine price.

He said, “The reduction of pump price by N10 was a pleasant surprise but since morning, fuel stations have failed to implement the directive. However, the commodity is still under public price control. It is better to deregulate and allow the forces of supply and demand determine the price.”

Labour perspectives

Also, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, welcomed the reduction, but insisted that it fell short of expectation.

NLC, in a statement by its General Secretary, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, argued that the N10 price slash translated to 10.3 per cent reduction compared to 33 per cent price reduction in most countries. Just as the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, speaking through its General Secretary, Mr. Issa Aremu, also commended government for the price reduction.

Also reacting to the reduction, the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association, NECA, commended the Federal Government, but called for the total deregulation of sector.

NECA in a statement by its Director General, Mr. Segun Oshinowo, said, “We want to commend the promptness of the Federal Government in reviewing downward the price of fuel from N97per litre to N87per litre. By this action, the government has demonstrated its sensitivity to the welfare of Nigerians.

“We should, however, remind ourselves that this action by government is begging the more fundamental issue of appropriate policy framework that will promote investment in the downstream sector of the Oil & Gas, and put a stop to the embarrassing and shameful practice of importation of PMS.

“Our expectation therefore, is that government would seize the opportunity of the current decline in the price of crude oil to commence implementation of the policy on deregulation of the downstream sector of the Oil & Gas.”

Also speaking, President of Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, Igwe Achese, said it was long expected following the falling price of crude in the international market.

He said the Federal Government responded to the yearnings of Nigerians and the reality on ground.