New pump price offensive, fraudulent, insensitive ― PDP

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the leading opposition party has said the reviewed fuel pump price by the Federal Government was fraudulent.

The Federal Government had reviewed the pump price twice in the last two weeks from N145 to N125 and the latest review fixing the price at N123.50k per litre following the crash of global oil prices

The PDP said the rate was a further offensive and insensitive to the plight of the people insisting sales of the product would be sold to Nigerians at N90 be per litre.

The party in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said: “Our party describes the reduction of pump price by N1.50k as offensive, fraudulent; a further display of cruelty and insensitivity of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the plight of Nigerians, particularly as the nation battles the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The PDP insists that the correct price of pump price fuel is between N80 to N90 per litre, given the slump in the price of fuel and crude oil in the international market.

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“The PDP holds that any price beyond that is completely unacceptable, as it amounts to fleecing Nigerians.

“The party berates the APC administration for attempting to delude Nigerians by tweaking the cost decimals to create a misleading impression of price reduction while fleecing the unsuspecting public.

“The PDP challenges the APC and its administration to explain how they arrived at the pump price of N123.5 instead of the appropriate price of N90 per litre despite the fall in international price.

“The PDP asks the President Muhammadu Buhari administration to disprove Nigerians by immediately publishing the full prevailing landing cost, the prevailing 3% depot cost, the 3% trucking cost as well as the retail outlet admin cost and show why the pump price should be above N90 per litre.

“It indeed smacks of heartlessness that the APC, its leaders and cronies in government circle are rather manipulating fuel costs at this critical time when other governments across the world are seeking ways to mitigate the economic hardship being faced by their citizens.

“Our party maintains that since Nigerians earlier had to bear the brunt of high cost of fuel in the face of high oil prices in the international market, it is only fair that they also enjoy the benefits of the cut in international prices; an advantage the APC had continued to deny them.

“The PDP invites Nigerians to note how the APC and its leaders had remained silent and failed to support the demand for reduction of fuel price; a development that only points to apparent complicity in this sleazy scheme against our citizens.

“The PDP, therefore, charges the APC and its administration to immediately reduce the pump price to the appropriate price of N90 as well as refund the accruable, so far, from the N35 per litre difference and channel same to provision of palliatives to Nigerians.

“Our party also challenges the APC to join the PDP and other well-meaning Nigerians in our persistent demand that President Buhari orders the recovery of over N14 trillion oil money stolen by APC leaders in the last four years including the stolen N9trillion detailed in the leaked NNPC memo, and redirect same to the welfare of Nigerians.

“Furthermore, the PDP reiterates its demand for the establishment of Eminent Nigerians Group to manage donations towards mitigating the impact of COVID-19 and ensure that the palliatives get to venerable Nigerians without any political and bureaucratic bottlenecks,” the statement said.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE