With the increase in the price of petrol recently released by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL), Hafeez Ogunremi took to the streets of Ibadan to sample the opinions of Nigerians. His report:
The removal of fuel subsidy last year and the systematic increase in the pump price of petrol have continued to make life miserable for Nigerians.
Imam Ayegbami, owner and leader of a mosque in Sapati, Ibadan, stated how the removal of subsidy would have been beneficial if the leaders of the country had put the money to judicial use. “The amount one spends when going out in Ibadan is almost as if one is travelling on a long journey these days. At this point in time, it is better to even send money to the person one wants to go see because one spends almost the same amount on transport alone. The fuel subsidy that they removed can be pointed to as the major cause for all this. When the rewards of removing the fuel subsidy came to be, the funds gained were diverted elsewhere rather than to improving the economy. It is then that the senators knew that they needed to buy bulletproof vehicles among other things,” he said.
“When one takes away akara from the mouth of a child, one replaces it with honey. This is a popular Yoruba adage. However, when they removed fuel subsidy, there has not been any sort of benefit we gained from it. A solution I can proffer is that the government should look into agriculture more. More funds should be diverted into agriculture. The government can create a kind of scheme which would engage the people in farming, which would likewise help in boosting the economy. This will alleviate the pains of the people,” he added.
Mrs. Eniola Owoade, who lives at Yemetu, Ibadan told Saturday Tribune that she hoped for the better when news broke out about the construction of Dangote refinery. “The situation with petrol in the country is really affecting us. We thought Dangote refinery would bring relief; now all we get are pains and sadness. The price of petrol continue to go up which should not have been. The stories that have been coming out from the refinery and the NNPC do not line up well,” she said.
Another Nigerian, who identified herself as Mrs. Abosede, spoke about how the gradual increase of petrol price affects her budget for transportation and in effect, her basic necessities. She had this to say: “After the fuel subsidy was removed, it has increased the amount I spend on transportation. With this increase, comes an increase in the amount I have to spend altogether at the end of the month. From transportation to feeding, the rise in price of petrol has affected the stability we have been managing for a while now. It has severely affected our means of livelihood as well. We ask the government to find a solution because the situation is tiring.”
Folorunsho Ibrahim, a delivery truck driver lamented how subsidy removal has brought more misery to his job. “The hike in petrol price is really affecting us in our jobs. Whenever we want to collect or deliver goods for our owners, the petrol that we are given to complete our journey is not adequately measured. Even if where we are delivering to is far, they guess the measurement of what should be enough in our journey. Whether it is enough or not is not much of their concern. We would have to pay for the extra from our pockets because calling them is not an option,” he complained.
Muideen Oyediran, a trader at Molete, Ibadan, blamed the people for being corrupt and taking advantage of the terrible state of the country. He said: “In truth, we can see that the price of fuel has increased in the country. However, the troubles of the people are much. We want to gain more profit than we should. This is partly the government’s fault for making the people look for extra illegal means to make income. However, if we are content with the little we make and honest in our dealings, life would be easier for us. The fuel disbursed for sale at a particular price, the people look for extra means to gain more from it. The NNPCL has their faults as well. The tankers that should be taken to different NNPCL filling stations across the country are diverted elsewhere, all in a bid to make more money. The major marketers in the petrol industry are also after their own pockets. The new refinery that we heard would help to solve the fuel issues in Nigeria has only sadly worsened it. It is a pity, and I believe that the government would find a solution to it as soon as possible.”
Prior to the 3 September, 2024, petrol was sold by the NNPCL for N568 – N617 per litre. The price has gone up multiple times in the couple of months after the removal of subsidy. However, following a period of fuel scarcity across the nation, the NNPC increased the price of petrol to between N855 – N897 per litre across the nation. The price differs across the nation, with Lagos usually having the cheapest price.
For many, the news about a Dangote refinery being built in the country brought about hope and good news for the people. The notion was that with a locally owned refinery in the country, it would deliver cheaper petrol. This would lead to more productivity and in effect, a better economy. The average man who rides keke napep or motorcycle, commonly referred to as Okada, would earn enough to take home for his family while companies would divert more of the funds they had allocated to the buying of petrol to better use.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV a few days ago, the CEO of Dangote refinery, Alhaji Aliko Dangote had a different idea of why he built the refinery. For him, it is purely business. He said: “The Saudi Arabia government was selling gasoline at a very low price, but today, as we speak, gasoline is about 40 percent cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia, which I think doesn’t make sense.” Speaking on the issue of subsidy, the CEO of the refinery added that “the removal of subsidy is totally on the government not us. If they want to remove subsidy, they can announce that they have removed subsidy. Everybody will adjust. I think it is because all countries have actually gotten rid of subsidy.”
The CEO of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, countered this claim. “NNPCL bought from us, this particular one on the 15 of September at the international price. The ones they bought from us was actually cheaper than the one they imported. So when they announced our price, it wasn’t the real price. What they announced was likely what it cost them including profits and other things. Meanwhile, they have never added profit to their cost before,” he said in his Bloomberg interview.
Right now, the cost of transportation has increased due to the hike in petrol price by the NNPCL. “This is basic economics, or rather, basic lifestyle to Nigerians. The new petrol price has hit an all-time high; with people buying a litre at over 500% the price it was prior to the Tinubu-led administration. Nigerians are no strangers to this scourge though. With any new increase, commercial drivers pass the newly incurred cost onto their passengers, resulting in higher transport fares. For the commuter, this means that their transportation budget would have to increase, thus leaving less for the other essential needs like food and healthcare. The ripple effect of an increased transport fare leads to inflation and pains,” another Nigerian lamented.
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