Despite long queues and above N200 per litre pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) across states, the Federal Government yesterday insisted that the pump price of the product remains at N170 per litre.
The Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, in a press release, denied any increase in the price of PMS. But across states, the pump price has since jumped above N200 per litre despite the payment of subsidy by the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
While it was widely reported last Thursday that the Federal Government officially increased the price of petrol to N185 per litre from N170 per litre and ex-depot price from N148 per litre to N167, Sylva denied the information.
With over N7 trillion spent on petrol subsidies last year, Nigerians faced scarcity of the product, as the price could not be controlled across states. In major cities like Abuja and Lagos, prices stayed below N200 per litre but above across other states.
Sylva said President Muhammadu Buhari has not approved any price increase for PMS as being bandied around.
In a statement signed by his Senior Adviser (Media and Communications), Horatius Egua, Sylva said: “President Muhammadu Buhari has not approved any increase in the price of PMS or any other petroleum product for that matter. There is no reason for President Muhammadu Buhari to renege on his earlier promise not to approve any increase in the price of PMS at this time. Mr. President is sensitive to the plights of the ordinary Nigerian and has said repeatedly that he understands the challenges of the ordinary Nigerian and would not want to cause untold hardship for the electorate.
“Government will not approve any increase of PMS secretly without due consultations with the relevant stakeholders. The President has not directed the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) or any agency for that matter to increase the price of fuel. This is not the time for any increase in pump price of PMS.
“What is playing out is the handiwork of mischief makers and those planning to discredit the achievements of Mr. President in the oil and gas sector of the economy. I appeal to Nigerians to remain calm and law abiding as the government is working hard to bring normalcy to fuel supply and distribution in the country.”
[Guardian]
