The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has urged the Federal Government to reverse petrol prices to what they were in June 2023 and called for decisive intervention in the fuel sector to address rising costs. Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, TUC President Festus Osifo stressed the need for petrol prices to not only return to their June 2023 levels but to drop even further.
“We want the price of the product to go below what it was before; not just reverse to what it was before but to go below,” Osifo stated. He proposed a solution to the fuel crisis by urging the government to give Dangote Refinery access to foreign exchange at ₦1,000 per dollar, instead of the current rate of over ₦1,600, which would, in turn, lower the price of petrol significantly.
Osifo also emphasized that the government must intervene in critical sectors such as oil, pointing out that no government in the world leaves its oil sector completely at the mercy of market forces. “The Federal Government shouldn’t leave it [the oil sector] to the vagaries and gyration of our naira,” he stated.
Since May 2023, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has increased petrol prices from ₦184 in Lagos to ₦998. As of June 2023, the price per litre in Lagos was around ₦450, marking a stark difference compared to the current cost. Osifo made a passionate plea, saying that petrol is essential for all Nigerians, and the current high prices are unsustainable for households across the country.
He also demanded that the Federal Government, through the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), issue licenses to all marketers to lift petrol directly from the Dangote Refinery, as a way to ensure supply and control prices. Osifo highlighted that if Dangote’s production cannot meet the nation’s daily fuel demand, the NNPCL must explore other sources of refined petrol to make up for the shortfall.
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“If the production from Dangote Refinery is less than 15 million litres per day, it is not sufficient,” he said, adding that while efforts are being made to ramp up production, the government should source refined fuel from other places to meet demand. “For us, that is key because it will address the issue of availability,” he concluded.
This call comes on the heels of a new price hike announced on Wednesday, which saw NNPCL outlets in Lagos selling petrol at ₦998 per litre, up from the initial ₦855. Motorists and transporters responded with panic buying, leading to long queues at filling stations. Many non-NNPCL outlets followed suit, with some stations in Lagos charging as much as ₦1,050 per litre.
In Abuja, the situation was similarly dire, with NNPCL outlets increasing prices from ₦897 to ₦1,030. The price hike follows a previous increase on September 2, 2024, which saw prices leap from ₦568 to ₦855. Although there has been no official statement from the NNPCL regarding the latest hike, the company hinted at a potential price increase after it began loading petrol from the Dangote Refinery in mid-September.
The TUC’s demands, therefore, aim to alleviate the burden of escalating fuel costs on Nigerians and restore affordability, availability, and accessibility for all.