Just at a time when Nigerians are languishing and groaning under the hardships occasioned by the current economic situation in Nigeria, the PMB led Federal Government has increased the pump price of petrol (PMS) by a disproportionate sum of N58.50 from N86.50 to N145.
This coming at a time when prices of essential commodities have continued to soar in the market (due mainly to the fall of the Naira in relation to the Dollar) coupled with a lack of citizens' sensitization by government especially at a time when the President himself has repeatedly promised to embark on measures to ameliorate the sufferings of the masses, would no doubt portray the President and his government in bad light among Nigerians of all social strata.
In addition, Nigerians had been told not too long ago, when a PPPRA price modulation fixed petrol price for N86.50 that the government was no longer subsidizing petrol - that government was no longer paying subsidy to anyone and it's the reason there wasn't provision for subsidy payment in the 2016 Budget.
Similarly, the Minister of State for Petroleum had said the same thing before the Senate not too long ago. Why would the same PPPRA and Minister now turn around and start telling tales of government having been paying subsidies to the tune of N10 billion up to the first quarter of 2016? This is nothing but fraud.
Not only that, the explanation given for this is so puerile and stands reason on the head. How then is the present government different from all the fraudulent ones we had had in the past, if government officials would dish out lies to citizens all the times?
My conclusion is that the President has been held hostage by those doing underhand dealings with our oil and here I am not exonerating the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, whose tenure has been characterized by the worst forms of fuel crises ever seen in this clime.
This fuel price increase or whatever they call it cannot be the right solution to the lingering fuel crises in Nigeria, especially at this time of pervasive hardships across the land. Why can't the government deal with individual marketers who have been sabotaging government efforts to make fuel available throughout the country?
It is common knowledge that most marketers engage in hoarding and diversion of petrol in addition to selling it above the price prescribed by the government. What practical steps has this government been able to take to cut such marketers to size?
Are they above the law or is someone benefiting from the illegal proceeds of their acts of sabotage? What has the government done about millions of petrol filling stations spread across the country whose owners get fuel allocations from the depots but never take those allocations to their filling stations for dispensing to the public?
What has the government done to checkmate the activities of depot ‘chiefs’ and their accomplices who impose bribes on marketers before they load their tankers with fuel? It is unfortunately noteworthy that the bribes imposed by these overtly corrupt depot ‘chiefs’ are on a per litre basis. See how bad impunity has grown in the land?
Other reasons why I am of the conviction that the government ought not to have embarked on this embarrassing fuel price hike are as follows. Recently, Nigerians have been told by Kachikwu and other NNPC Chiefs that all the four refineries in the country (one in Kaduna, one in Warri and two in Port Harcourt) are back to work and have started refining products, up to 70% of installed capacity. This we were told would significantly complement whatever the government imports of petrol. Now, what has changed between April and May when the nation got these assurances from government to warrant this disproportionate increase in petrol pump price? Similarly, what has happened to the crude oil refining theory postulated by Buhari and Kachikwu to the effect that Nigeria only needs to swap crude for refined petrol with refineries abroad, with the attendant benefits of minimizing production costs?
This writer is also aware like majority of informed Nigerians that every barrel of crude oil is equal to 42 gallons or 168 litres of crude oil and that when this is refined, petrol and other byproducts (such as diesel, aviation fuel, kerosine, bitumen, etc) are obtained. Hence, I posit that the current PPPRA template for modulating petrol price is fraught with fraud as it does not logically and adequately address basic arithmetic of petrol refining metrics. For example, how much crude are we refining locally and how much are we refining abroad? What are we able to save in terms of cost when we refine locally? What are the additional costs that we incur when we refine abroad? How do we balance the savings from domestic production against the additional costs of foreign production, if any?
There are so many more questions to ask, all of which border on transparency and accountability in the oil sector, a sector that has become so notorious for the inexplicable quantum of sleaze and corruption embedded in its operations and activities. Any serious government primed on bringing about meaningful change to this nation must confront the evil barons and cabals in the oil sector and their local and foreign accomplices head on, if it must make headway and secure relief for the masses, from the consequences of their nefarious and unGodly activities.
I therefore have no any iota of doubt in my mind that this fuel price increase will bring about serious credibility issues for the Buhari government because as it is now, majority of Nigerians are angry about the policy and that coupled with the stance of labour on the issue may lead to mass actions, the likes of which may make the #OccupyNigeria of the Jonathan era a mere child's play.
Finally, I am unapologetic to anyone for my convictions as I have written here. I am a diehard Buharist but on the condition that Buharism brings about true and enduring change in Nigeria and succour to Nigerians. Outside this, Buharism remains just another hollow mantra.