It makes no sense for oil to be cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia —Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has said at N161 per liter for petrol pump price Nigeria sells at cheaper price than many oil producing countries.

He said that it made “no sense for oil to be cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia“, where according to him a liter of petrol is sold at N168 per liter.

Speaking on the recent increase of petrol pump price during Nigeria’s 60th independence anniversary broadcast, Buhari said at a time when the economies of the world were in crises following the impact of COVID-19, “a responsible government must face realities and take tough decisions.”

He said, “Fellow Nigerians, in addition to public health challenges of working to contain the spread of the Coronavirus, we have suffered a significant drop in our foreign exchange earnings and internal revenues due to 40 per cent drop in oil prices and steep drop in economic activities, leading to a 60 per cent drop in government revenue.

Read also: #IndependenceDay… No past govt has done as much as we are doing –Buhari

“Our government is grappling with the dual challenge of saving lives and livelihoods in face of drastically reduced resources.

“In this regard, sustaining the level of petroleum prices is no longer possible. The government, since coming into office has recognized the economic argument for adjusting the price of petroleum. But the social argument about the knock-on effect of any adjustment weighed heavily with the government.

Comparing the price of petrol in Nigeria and other oil producing countries, Buhari said:

“Petroleum prices in Nigeria are to be adjusted. We sell now at N161 per litre. A comparison with our neighbours will illustrate the point;

“a. Chad which is an oil producing country charges N362 per litre

b. Niger, also an oil producing country sells 1 litre at N346.

c. In Ghana, another oil producing country, petroleum pump price is N326 per litre.

“Further afield, Egypt charges N211 per litre. Saudi Arabia charges N168 per litre. It makes no sense for oil to be cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia.”

The president said that for Nigerians, to achieve the great country “we desire, we need to solidify our strength, increase our commitment and encourage ourselves to do that which is right and proper even when no one is watching.”

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