We Will Never Allow FG Increase Fuel Price- NLC

Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC has vowed to
resist any increase in the price of petroleum
products by the Federal Government has been
speculated. They said they totally kick against it
and implore the Government to do something
fats about the scarcity of petrol across the
country. Read the press statement they sent out
after the cut.
Since the last few weeks when scarcity of
petroleum products at sale stations became
noticeable, workers and the Nigerian people have
experienced excruciating hardship and trauma
with incoherent excuses from marketers and
ostensible helplessness from the Federal
government as well as relevant agencies
responsible to rectify the deplorable situation.
“The scarcity of the product and long hours at
fuel stations in queues have clearly slowed down
productivity and its attendant effect on service
delivery and production within the economy.
“While importers claim the unnecessary delay in
obtaining import approvals from the Federal
Government, which enables them import the
products early enough to meet up with public
demands, is the cause of the scarcity; the NNPC
insists the products are available, but the
marketers are hoarding products to deliberately
increase prices.
“The recent announcement by the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation NNPC that it has
supplied 50 million litres of fuel to marketers and
intensified its monitoring exercise to check
hoarding of the product has not ameliorated, but
heightened the sufferings of Nigerians as prices
have continued to skyrockets with a litre of fuel
selling between N500 – N800 in the parallel
market.
“Assurances by the NNPC notwithstanding, the
tirade and buck passing between the corporation
and marketers indicate an attempt to deliberately
inflict hardship on Nigerians so as to accept
increase in fuel prices.
“We hope this is not the case, as the Labour
Movement will resist any attempt to further
impoverish the working people with increase in
fuel prices.
“It is bad enough that our country have to be
importing products it produces, and scandalous
that government have not been able to fix the
rot in the petroleum industry despite promises
publicly made by successive governments
between 1999 and now.
“We believe the government can do better by
immediately bringing supplies of these products
to its normal status because the economy may
be halted soon should the scarcity continue.
“Nigerians can only hold the Federal Government
responsible for the scarcity and not the
marketers.
“We didn’t elect marketers to govern us.
Government must take full responsibility for the
scarcity and take decisive steps to restore
normalcy urgently.