Nigerians Should Prepare For Pump Price Hike, Marketers Warn

…Say Subsidy Payment Exceeds N700bn Monthly

Petrol marketers under the aegis of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) have warned Nigerians to prepare for a hike in pump prices soon as there is an increase in the global price of petrol.

The association also disclosed that contrary to the federal government’s claim that it has removed the fuel subsidy, it is paying billions of naira monthly as a subsidy. It warned that fuel subsidy expenditure might cross N700 billion monthly.

The Secretary of IPMAN, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, made the revelations in a statement on Monday, in a reaction to data released last Wednesday by the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria, noting that the landing cost of petrol as of the preceding day was N1,117 per litre.

Shuaibu confirmed MEMAN’s data while warning Nigerians to prepare for another hike in pump prices. He noted that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and the Nigerian government may not be telling the truth about the country’s fuel subsidy expenditure.

He said: 

Petrol price is determined by the forces of demand and supply in the international market. When there is a global price increase, we should experience it in Nigeria.

Therefore, the N1,117/litre is not just based on our foreign exchange rate but also the global PMS cost. The sole importer of this product is NNPC, and the company is not telling us the truth.

“But data sourced by our counterparts, the major marketers, showed clearly that the landing cost of petrol is above N1,100/litre. This means that the monthly subsidy has crossed N700bn.

“That also means we should be prepared so that any time the price of petrol jumps, we should not be surprised because they have already told us,” Shuaibu stated.

Recall that President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of fuel subsidy on the day of his inauguration. However, it is believed that the federal government is secretly paying the subsidy.

After multiple denials, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, last month admitted that the government was secretly paying fuel subsidy

Edun conceded the subsidy payment in a draft report of the Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan (ASAP), submitted to the President in June. He projected that the fuel subsidy would reach N5.4 trillion by the end of 2024.

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