Governors’ proposed petrol price provocative, insensitive – NLC

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has rejected the Nigerian Governors’ Forum’s proposal of between N380 and N408 per litre of petrol in the country.

In a communiqué issued at the end of its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting on Tuesday in Abuja and signed by the President, Ayuba Wabba; and the Acting General Secretary, Ismail Bello, NLC described the governors’ recommendation as provocative, arbitrary, and insensitive to the current economic realities in the country.

The communiqué was made available to journalists on Thursday.

NLC insisted that any increase in petrol pump price,  even by one cent “would attract an immediate withdrawal of services by Nigerian workers all over the country without any further notice.’’

The congress also resolved to write to the Federal Government about the plight and concerns of workers on the governors’ proposals as well as its stance on the matter.

NLC insisted that the only sustainable solution to the crisis of fuel importation and associated dislocations in the downstream subsector of the petroleum industry is the rehabilitation of the four refineries in the country.

The governors had on May 20 recommended a petrol pump price of between N380 and N408 per litre as well as the immediate removal of fuel subsidy to save the nation’s economy.

READ ALSO: El-Rufai-led committee proposes N385 per litre for petrol, describes subsidy as evil

They insisted that the current subsidy regime was unsustainable because smugglers and illegal markets in neigbouring African countries were the beneficiaries of the arrangement.

The communiqué read: “The NEC-in-Session also viewed the proposal by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum for a 300 percent increase in the price of petrol as the height of provocation, arbitrariness, detachment, and insensitivity to the current economic realities in the country and the extreme hardship that Nigerians, especially workers are going through.

“The NEC also noted that there is currently no negotiation with the government over the fuel price increase. The NEC recalled that the last meeting with the government in February 2021 was adjourned sine die. Since then, no other meeting has been called by the government.

“The NEC resolved that any decision to increase by even one cent the price of refined petroleum products, especially PMS will attract an immediate withdrawal of services by Nigerian workers all over the country without any further notice.”

 

 

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