• Shun panic buying
• Group hails petrol stability
The President, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Abubakar Maigandi, yesterday reiterated that any talk of petrol pump price increase is mere rumour.
Maigandi, in a telephone conversation with The Nation yesterday, explained that though private depots in Lagos sell the product at N621 per litre, IPMAN members in the axis have been able to stick to the current retail price of between N600 and N630 per litre at the pumps because they get their supplies mainly from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) at N568 per litre.
“Yes, we make very little profit on what we sell now, but it is a sacrifice that everybody has to make in the interest of the country. Subsidy has been removed, so we must all make the sacrifice and cooperate with government. Besides, we have not received any of such instruction to increase price from NNPCL who is the only importer of the product. So if NNPCL says no increase why would anybody increase the price?” Maigandi asked rhetorically.
In a related development, the National President, Petroleum Retailers Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PROOAN), Dr. Billy Gillis-Harry, yesterday said the Federal Government and NNPCL ought to be celebrated for the stabilisation of fuel prices without the need for subsidy payments.
He spoke in an interview on ARISE NEWS, while examining issues around the alleged ongoing subsidy payments because of a purported discrepancy between the retail price of petroleum products and the landing cost of petroleum in the country.
“I think that if subsidy is being paid, we should hear it from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who clearly stated that the subsidy is gone on May 29, 2023. We have also not heard from the group CEO of NNPCL, Engineer Mele Kyari, and neither have we heard from the MD of NNPC Retail Limited.
“So, it is correct that people can have assumption competitions. Associations that are busy working for the interests of Nigerians and their members can also do some projections and speculations as to what’s going on, but the reality is that we can only get accurate information from the source. So, if the government says no subsidy means there is no subsidy, and that’s the reality,” Gillis-Harry stated.
“So, if the government has said that they are not paying subsidy and allow petroleum products to rise from where it was about N480 to N630, there is a clear mandate that we cannot go beyond that and NNPC is managing to make that work. I think we should give them credit and give them kudos,” he added.
According to Gillis-Harry, with Nigeria having the lowest fuel price globally, it is crucial to credit the President and NNPCL for implementing the policy that actualised the feat.
Meanwhile, the NNPCL, yesterday again reassured the public that there is no increment in the price of the commodity.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd. assures the public that there is no imminent increase in the cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol.
“NNPC Ltd. urges Nigerians to disregard unfounded rumours and assures them that there are no plans for an upward review of the PMS price. Motorists nationwide are advised against engaging in panic buying, as there is presently ample availability of PMS across the country,” its spokesman, Olufemi Soneye said.
THE NATION
