Labour faults fresh fuel price increase
From Segun Ayeoyenikan,
Abuja
THE Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday officially protested this week's fuel price increase in the country.
The protest was contained in a letter addressed to the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr. Funso Kupolokun. Also, the NLC wrote to the Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Dr. Oluwole Oluleye.
In the letter made available to journalists in Abuja, the NLC expressed dismay over the fresh fuel price increase.
Labour alleged that the increase from N44.50 to N45.50 which marketers now sell to the public came to be following a PPPRA initiated closed-door meeting. The NLC said the chairman of the Governing Board of PPPRA, Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi, held a meeting with marketers on June 30, 2004 which excluded other members of the board.
The NLC letter by its Acting General Secretary, Mr. Owei Lakemfa, not only condemned the PPPRA's action, but pointed out that the action was completely unwarranted and a violation of the subsisting order of the Federal High Court which directed that the fuel price regime of pre-February 7, 2004 be maintained.
The NLC in its letter to the PPPRA said the body should immediately intervene to restore the prices to pre-February 7, 2004 level of N39 per litre as ordered by the Federal High Court.
Labour said: "Any vacillation in doing this will imply that the leadership of the PPPRA is only interested in precipitating mass discontent, heating up the polity and portraying the Federal Government as incapable of honouring its commitments.
On Monday, a new price regime of an increment of N1 per litre was implemented by marketers without any official announcement by both the PPPRA and NNPC over the new rate.
The NLC's letter to the two bodies yesterday has cautioned that "everything must be done to ensure that the increase is reviewed as the NLC would have no alternative but to respond based on its strong view of the situation.
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