Again, Crude Oil Prices Rise
Labour, civil societies meet on fuel price
By Mike Oduniyi, Chris Nwachuku in Lagos and Chuks Okocha in Abuja
Crude oil prices rose to $37.80 per barrel yesterday, casting doubt over an early return to fuel importation by major petroleum products marketers in Nigeria.
Marketers had abandoned fuel importation since last month due to rising oil prices in the international market and consequently, the cost of refined oil.
Labour and civil society groups will, however, meet next week to review the level of compliance by the marketers to the ruling of Abuja Federal High Court, directing them to revert pump prices of petroleum products to the pre February 9, 2004 levels.
Yesterday's upswing in crude prices, after taking a dive in the last five days, followed the sabotage attacks on Iraqi oil pipelines that crippled the Middle East country's oil exports.
The August delivery for Light sweet crude climbed 38 cents to $37.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchan-ge, while the market's benchmarck crude, the Brent, rose 37 cents to $37.40 per barrel.
Iraq's oil minister, Thamir Ghadhban, said that the blasts which occured on Monday, damaged the country's main pipeline from its southern oilfields to its Persian Gulf terminals, at Basra and Khor al-Amaya,
The bulk of Iraq's oil exports, which provide 90 percent of the country's own revenue, flow through these two terminals. It was the second attack in five weeks on the pipeline into Basra. The previous attack early last month slowed, but did not sever, the flow of oil.
Iraqi officials confirmed yesterday that the latest attack had halted exports of abour 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd), as an antiquated backup pipeline failed to cope with the additional pressure. Repairs to the main pipeline were estimated to take 10 days.
The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corpora-tion (NNPC), Engr. Funsho Kupolokun had told THISDAY Board of Editors in Lagos on Tuesday, that the Iraqi crisis remained a key factor in determining oil prices in the international market. Prices had remained on the high side since last October. It, however, fell sharply last week to about $34 per barrel from $42, following the decision of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to raise production by 2.0 million bpd from next month.
Kupolokun said marketers abandoned fuel importation since May due to high cost of procuring the products. The NNPC on the other hand has been subsidising the sale of imported products in the country to the tune of N400 million daily, he said.
Also, marketers had retained petrol price at between N42.70 and N42.90 per litre, which has been strongly opposed by Labour, demanding that marketers revert to N41.50 per litre.
THISDAY gathered that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and a coalition of civil society group, will meet next week.
The meeting will decide whether to resume the suspended strike to work out fresh strategies after consultation with appropriate government agencies and the Inspector General of Police to enforce compliance with the N41.50 per litre price.
Already, the Lagos State chapter of NLC had given the marketers operating in the state 24 hours within which to comply with the court order or face the wrath of the workers.
THISDAY learnt that the coalition meeting expected to hold in Lagos will review reports from various states of the country as well as the pronouncement by various government officials, particularly that of the Group Managing Director of NNPC.
NLC and its allies in suspending the strike, had given the marketers up till tomorrow to comply with the court order or face fresh crises.
"We have been told that a meeting will be held early next week to determine how far the marketers have obeyed the court order. The meting has only one agenda, we shall decide based on reports on the ground whether to resume the strike or not," said a senior unionist last night.
The NLC Assistant General Secretary, in charge of Lagos office, Denjo Yaqub, confirmed to THISDAY that a meeting is being planned for next week, for the coalition of Labour and civil society. "We have been consulting on daily bases, the enlarged meeting of next week will make a final pronouncement on the way forward," he said.
The Congress of Free Trade Unions (CFTU), one of the three major labour centers ahead of the next week meeting had directed its officials to link up with other centers and non-governmental organisations. It urged the members to prepare in the event that the coalition order resumption of the strike.
CFTU said it has become necessary in view of the emerging signals that compliance had been low in some parts of the country.
Rising from its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting yesterady in Lagos, CFTU which accommodates pilots, senior bank workers, employees in iron and steel sector, air transport senior staff among others said "the criminal method being used by the government and the marketers to cause artificial scarcity thereby making the gains of the last strike not to reach the people is clearly unacceptable."
The union urged Nigerians, organised Labour and its allies to reject what it described as a blackmail. It directed "its officials to link up with other allies to resume the strike if after the expiration of the seven days given when the strike was being suspended, is not utilised by the marketers and government to reverse their prices and make products available."
The CFTU said its delegates conference of June 24 can only hold if there is no resumption of strike.
CFTU said government incessant increases in the prices of petroleum products and its resolve to abdicate its responsibilities to fuel dealers and marketers is intended to defraud the people.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Council of NLC may force fuel stations to close shop today if fail to adjust the pump price to N4.50.
Worried by the non-compliance with court order, its council chairman, Michael Olukoya, said the action of the marketers decision to hoard fuel and create artificial scarcity in a bid to jerk up the price was unacceptable.
All the fuel stations visited yesterday, which include Mobil, Texaco, Oando, AP, Coinoil and Total all on Ikorodu road, were selling between N42.70 and N42.90. The workers officials decried this and threatened to shut down fuel stations via picketing today if they failed to adjust to N41.50.
The station attendants in all the place visited especially at Total Palmgrove told the Labour team that the rate being sold was informed by the directive from the headquarters.
Olukoya said, "Tell your management that if by tomorrow they fail to obey court order, we will be forced to picket your stations. Nigeria is not a lawless state, we must obey court orders."
At the same Total sales outlet too, NLC officials discovered that though the station had over 5,000 litres of fuel, it closed to motorists.
Although attendants complained of bad pumping machine, the NLC team said it was a deliberate action to create scarcity. Olukoya said Labour would not accept any excuse on its return visit and directed them to open their stations before the close of work yesterday.
Meanwhile, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Audu Ogbeh, said the Federal Government was "making every effort to moderate the price of crude and keep it at controllable level."
Ogbeh said in a statement issued yesterday that government was also making efforts to control the increasing price of fuel by ensuring that the naira appreciate in value. "This is already appreciating in the last few months," he noted.
This, he added, government was doing through restriction on the importation of some goods as well as fiscal discipline on the part of governemnt.
"It is the intention of the party and government to continue with this programme with some major items coming off the list of imports in the next few months.
"We believe that it is through this exercise the Naira will regain its true value. We also believe that a stronger Naira will mean that we have to pay much less for petroleum products that we are currently paying and bring relief to all Nigerians and businesses nationwide," Ogbeh said.
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