BY Uche Amunike
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called on the Federal Government to urgently introduce measures to cushion the effect of the latest increase in petrol prices, including reasonable wage awards for workers and the sale of crude oil to local refineries in naira.
Speaking, through a statement issued by the NLC and signed by its President, Joe Ajaero, Wednesday, he warned that petrol now sells for about ₦1,430 per litre in major cities, while prices are reportedly higher in less accessible areas.
The labour centre stated that the development would worsen the economic hardship already facing Nigerians, noting that increases in transportation costs usually lead to higher prices of food, rent, school fees and other essential goods and services.
The statement, titled: ‘Save the Situation Now,’ announced that the latest increase occurred when pressure on oil marketers to reduce pump prices, following lower international crude prices, was beginning to yield results.
According to the NLC, the increase has been linked to renewed conflict in the Gulf. However, it argued that Nigeria’s position as an oil-producing country should provide some protection against shocks in the international oil market.
The union urged the Federal Government to immediately shield households and businesses from the effects of the higher fuel prices.
Among its demands are reasonable wage awards for workers, crude oil sales in naira to local refineries and an expansion of national petroleum storage capacity. It said the measures would strengthen energy security and improve the country’s ability to respond to emergencies.
The NLC said government intervention, including subsidies, should not be excluded during an emergency.
Ajaero averred that there was nothing wrong with government subsidizing citizens’ needs in emergency situations, adding that other oil-producing countries were introducing forms of intervention to protect their populations from the energy crisis.
The NLC also claimed that the Federal Government was benefiting from higher international crude prices, with crude reportedly selling about $35 to $40 per barrel above the benchmark used in the national budget.
It described the additional revenue as a windfall that could provide fiscal space for measures to protect citizens from the rising cost of living.
The union further criticized the reported importation of crude by some local refineries, arguing that the practice undermines efforts to build domestic refining capacity.
It said local refineries importing crude was unreasonable and defeated the purpose of developing local capacity.
The latest petrol price increase comes amid Nigeria’s transition to a deregulated downstream petroleum sector following the removal of petrol subsidy in May 2023.
The policy has made domestic fuel prices more sensitive to crude oil prices, foreign exchange costs, logistics and other market factors. Government efforts have also focused on increasing domestic refining and reducing dependence on imported petroleum products.
The NLC urged the government to act quickly, warning against allowing workers to bear the full burden of rising fuel costs.
Ajaero said the Federal Government could not afford to watch marketers inflict hardship on Nigerians in the name of deregulation, while reiterating that labour had an obligation to speak out or take appropriate action.
