The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers have stressed the need for strict compliance with the new pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, also known as petrol, as the product is still being sold above the regulated price in many parts of the country.
The Federal Government through the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency had last week announced that retail filling stations belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation would from January 1, 2016 sell petrol at N86 per litre, while other marketers would sell the product at N86.50 per litre, as against the old pump price of N87.
The Chairman, TUC Rivers State, Mr. Chika Onuegbu, said in a telephone interview, “I think that with what the government has done, you will not expect the marketers to hurriedly comply, given the character of the marketers we have in Nigeria. These are people that even when the fuel was N87, at every opportunity they had, they wanted to sell at N130 or N140.
“The way to ensure that they sell at the new price is for the Department of Petroleum Resources, the NNPC, and the security agencies to collaborate and enforce the price. Then, state governments should set up a task force to monitor the marketers, the distribution of petroleum products and ensure that petroleum products meant for their states get there and that they are sold to the people at the correct prices.”
He said the marketers were manipulating the prices because of lack of collaboration in the enforcement of the new price.
