“Can NNPC Dictate Price for Dangote?” NLC Calls for Mass Action over Fuel Price Hike

“Can NNPC Dictate Price for Dangote?” NLC Calls for Mass Action over Fuel Price Hike

  • Reports making the rounds on Wednesday disclosed that the NNPCL increased the price of fuel from N898 to over N1,030
  • This development did not sit well with the NLC as it demanded the reversal of the "sudden" petrol price hike
  • NLC president Joe Ajaero lampooned the federal government led by President Tinubu and noted that it is illogical that a private firm is the one determining the prices of the products

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

The president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has condemned the fuel pump price increase by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).

Labour slam Tinubu over petrol price hike
Labour rejects petrol price hike. Photo credit: Nigeria Labour Congress HQ, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu
Source: Facebook

He noted that a registered private company should not dictate fuel prices for Nigerians.

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Filling stations set new fuel prices after NNPC’s N1,030 per litre adjustment

Ajaero also demanded an immediate reversal of the fresh fuel price hike, saying it is an aberration that the NNPCL is fixing fuel prices in a so-called deregulated sector.

Recall that the NNPCL raised the pump price of fuel. Reports show that petrol, which previously sold for N897 per litre in Abuja, now retails at N1,030 per litre.

This represents a 14.8% or N133 rise when compared to the pump price quoted as of September 2024.

The change in pump prices was observed at various NNPCL stations in Abuja.

Reacting to the development, the NLC urged the federal government led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to immediately reverse the latest hike in petrol prices, as previous increases had not produced any positive results.

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In a statement by its president, Ajaero, the NLC also called for collective action to protest the hike stating that, “Nigerians are expecting the labour movement to react to this hike. If we can get some naira or are unable to get it, only workers will benefit from that. What I think Nigerians should do is to mobilise and react as a collective”

“We have heard that Dangote Refinery is producing locally and prices are going up. All the indices they gave to us about the need to deregulate, have proven negative. You are fixing prices as a private company. As far as I’m concerned, except something has happened to CAC, NNPCL is now a private company. Can that same NNPCL dictate the price for Dangote and other private companies? Those are issues, those are questions begging for answers.
“And all these discussions are hovering around the N70,000 minimum wage. What is the level of inflation between the time we signed the N70,000 minimum wage and now? Those are the issues that will bother us for the next few days in this country”, he said.

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Fuel price at N1030: Presidential CNG initiative sends key message to Nigerians, “good news”

The Punch and The Guardian confirmed the development in its publication on Wednesday.

NNPC unveils six new locations for CNG

In related news, Legit.ng reported that NNPC Ltd urged Nigerians to switch to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).

The NNPC has ramped up efforts to expand the availability of CNG at its filling stations nationwide amid rising petrol prices.

The company said CNG stations are now available in Abuja at Gaduwa, Wuse, Gudu, Dei Dei, Ushafa, and Gwagwalada.

Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Esther Odili avatar

Esther Odili (Politics and Current Affairs Editor) Esther Odili is a journalist and a Politics/Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng with 6+ years of experience. She Holds OND and HND in Mass Communication from the Nigerian Institue of Journalism (NIJ), where she was recognized as the best student in print journalism in 2018. Before joining Legit.ng, Esther has worked with other reputable media houses, such as the New Telegraph newspaper and Galaxy Television. In 2024, Esther obtained a certificate in advanced digital reporting from the Google News Initiative. Email: esther.odili@corp.legit.ng.