The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Petrol price

  • Petrol price: Nigerians seek not yet repose

    SIR: The announcement of the N10 reduction of premium motor spirit (pms) pump price on Sunday night triggered a buzz on notable social platforms like twitter, facebook and BBM.

    It is a laudable achievement on the part of the federal government, albeit belated and not exactly impressive when putting other crucial factors into consideration. The price of crude dropped to $50 per barrel well over five months ago, at present in the U.S.A, a gallon of P.M.S which was sold at $3.50 now sells at $1.57, that is almost 45% reduction and we say we are oil-producing ?

    Nigerians need not be reminded that when President Goodluck Jonathan came in, he met the pump price at N65:00 and consequently jerked it up to N97:00 under the ruse of subsidy removal amidst loss of innocent lives.

    This reduction smacks of a Greek gift, a Trojan horse to be precise, what with the election 27 days away. It is an ill-timed, unfiltered, crass seduction of our sensibilities. President Jonathan wants my vote so he conveniently throws N10 in my face which I’ll most likely pay heavily for come June; a badly timed political move indeed. Quoting from Robert Greene’s “Art of Seduction” which says familiarity is the death of seduction. The electorates have seen enough to make us wiser.

    However, a few questions bother me. By what indices did NNPC arrive at the N10 reduction in the pump price? Is the Federal Government still paying subsidy? Did the Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke just awaken from a six-month-deep slumber?

    Only one thread out of a thousand can go through the eye of a needle.

     

    • Adelayi Adediran. O. D,

    Ondo State

     

  • Petrol price hits N140 in Calabar

    The price of petrol has hit N140 per litre in Calabar, the Cross River State capital.
    Black market operators sell the product for N200 per litre, while the few filling stations that have the product sell for, at least, N140 per litre.
    Consequently, the cost of living has risen.
    A resident, Mr. David Effiong, said he paid N200 for a haircut instead of N100.
    The few commercial vehicles on the streets have hiked their fares from N50 to between N80 and N100. Many residents have resorted walking long distances.
    Chairman, Cross River State Petrol Tankers’ Association, Mr. Abdullahi Akomaye alleged that the petroleum products meant for the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) depot in Calabar were diverted to private depots, which sell at exorbitant rates.
    Akomaye said the NNPC depot sells at N88.1 per litre, while the private depots sell for over N100 per litre.
    He said 5,000 metric tons of petrol meant for the depot, which arrived last Wednesday, had not been released for reasons unknown.
    Efforts to reach the depot manager proved futile, as he did not pick his phone calls or return text messages.
    When The Nation got to his office at 3:55pm, he was said to have closed for the day.