The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have rejected the new pump price of petrol, which has been reduced to N935 per litre, and are asking for further cuts to make the product more affordable.
Recently, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and MRS Oil announced this price reduction, down from over N1,030 per litre in Lagos and N1,060 per litre in Abuja and northern states. This follows an agreement between the refinery and marketers.
However, the NLC and CSOs insist that the price is still too high. Speaking on behalf of the NLC, Chris Onyeka criticized the current pricing system, saying it does not reflect local refining costs.
“How can we be okay with a price of N935/litre of PMS? This is not the right price for PMS. You cannot base the price on imported products when we have refining capacity in Nigeria,” Onyeka said.
He added that the government must prioritize citizens’ welfare and determine petrol prices based on domestic production costs.
Debo Adeniran, Chairman of the Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, also described the price as “unsatisfactory.” He argued that the government and private companies could offer petrol at a much lower price or even for free.
The Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Ibrahim Rafsanjani, acknowledged the slight reduction but urged the government to do more, especially since private companies like Dangote Refinery have shown it is possible to reduce prices while remaining profitable.
Meanwhile, some motorists in Abuja have welcomed the reduction by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) to N965 per litre at its outlets, but queues have grown due to the price difference with other stations. Major marketers are yet to adjust their prices, citing old stock bought at higher rates.
