The House of Representatives has taken steps to address the recent increase in the pump price of petroleum products, calling for an immediate reversal of the hikes in petrol and cooking gas prices.
This move was led by Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Aliyu Sani Madaki, and supported by 111 members of the House.
The lawmakers expressed concerns over the hardships the price increases have caused for Nigerians, particularly in terms of job security.
In response, they urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to ramp up local refining capacity to reduce reliance on imports. The Green Chamber also called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to introduce monetary policies that would help mitigate the inflationary effects of the fuel price hikes.
This is as the World Bank has issued a warning, cautioning that further increases in petrol prices could reverse the minimal gains achieved after the removal of subsidies.
In its October edition of Africa’s Pulse report, the World Bank stated that a further hike of 40-45% in September may undo the gradual reduction in inflation observed in recent months.
In May 2023, President Bola Tinubu officially ended the petrol subsidy, resulting in a surge in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from N175 per litre to over N1,000 per litre nationwide. Meanwhile, a recent market survey shows that the price of 1 kg of cooking gas has risen to N1,500.
