*Mantu heads committee, Oshiomhole, 3 civil society members on board
*World oil prices near $54 per barrel
ABUJA — THE Federal Government yesterday inaugurated a committee to fashion out ways to cushion the effects of the recent increase in prices of petroleum products.
Members of the committee headed by Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, include Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Austin Opara; Governor Ahmed Makarfi of Kaduna State; Finance Minister, Mr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Women Affairs Minister, Obong Rita Akpan; and President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mr Adams Oshiomhole.
The NLC president, however, claimed that he was deceived into attending the inauguration. He said he was given the impression that he was invited to a stakeholders’ meeting to discuss the recent increase in the prices of petroleum products.
Meanwhile, world oil prices shot to a new record high nearing 54 dollars in New York following the strike in Nigeria and a long-running industrial dispute in Norway.
The hike in the prices of the petroleum products, however, got the support of Senator Emmanuel Azu Agbobi, chairman of the Senate Committee on downstream petroleum.
Other members of the committee tasked to fashion out a way to cushion the effects of the new prices of petroleum products include Group Manasging Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Engr. Funsho Kupolokun; Dr. Magnus Kpakol, National Co-ordinator, National Planning Commission; Special Duties Minister, Frank Nweke, Jr; Ms Angela Agoawike; Professor Yusuf Obaje; Engr. Mohammed Abba Gana; three members of the civil society, Mrs Dupe Adelaja, Head of Service, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, Minister of Information, Chief Chukwuemeka Chikelu, and Prof. Ode Ojowu, Economic Adviser to the President.
Inaugurating the 33-member committee, President Obasanjo reiterated his position that he was aware of the pain occasioned by the hike in the price of petrol, insisting that the pain would not last.
According to him, “this government has taken tough decisions on privatisation and deregulation of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry and we do know that these decisions will cause some temporary hardships on the generality of our people. As we have shown in the past, in the long run, as we have witnessed in telecommunications, the benefits will be there for all to enjoy. The function of this committee, therefore, is to collate, harmonise and coordinate measures that will be agreed to bring about short-term relief and medium-term positive impact on the effect of high oil prices.”
Challenging the committee to come out with “useful recommendations that will inform far-reaching, viable, and holistic policy and programme options for government,” Obasanjo said his administration was not playing God and would never do so as some people were portraying him and his administration. “This administration has never arrogated to itself all knowledge that it was all-knowing. We never attempted to play God and we believe that no individual or groups of individual, whether elected, appointed, selected or self-proclaimed, should play God in our society either by action or by pronouncement.
We have never fought shy of seeking advice, seeking dialogue or positive compromise or considering dialogue. But some people, for their own selfish interest and self-centredness, are trying to portray this administration in bad light. We were elected for the good of Nigeria for today and tomorrow. We will be irresponsible to forget the future and the successor generation. Only a bad father thinks of himself while alive and not of his offsprings. In doing that, such a father will be seen as wicked and irresponsible,” he said.
Continuing, he said, he was aware that leaders that are or were reformers were often misunderstood by their own people but quickly added: “For us it will not be that we failed to do what we should have done at the right time, in the short and medium terms in the interest of Nigeria.”
Responding on behalf of the committee, Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Mantu, thanked the president for deeming it fit to constitute the committee and pledged that the committee would not just address the present situation but would seek lasting solution to the problem of unending price adjustments. He frowned at the scorecard of the deregulation of the down stream sector, wondering when the price of fuel would stabilise in Nigeria.
“When the price of petrol went up to N40 per litre everybody thought that, that was going to be the final adjustment. Now we know better. We all thought that like GSM we were at the point where deregulation was complete and market forces were going to interplay to start bringing prices down. That we have not succeeded in the oil sector as much as in the telecommunications sector means that there are some things that we are still not doing right in the oil sector,” he said.
He said solutions must be found to the factors responsible for jacking up the prices, reassuring: “We will look for ways to effectively cushion the effects on Nigerians so that our oil boom can be a blessing to them and not otherwise. We would look for ways to stabilise our pump prices and we will look for ways to increase our domestic refining capacity.”
Meanwhile, shortly after inauguration, the committee went into a meeting that ended about 6p.m. Speaking to State House correspondents, chairman of the committee, Alhaji Mantu said the committee resolved to meet tomorrow to brainstorm on the measures that could cushion the effect of the hike in the prices of petrol. “We will meet on Thursday to decide on immediate measures to cushion the effect. We have appealed to NLC to call off the strike,” he said.
However NLC president, Comrade Oshiomhole claimed that he was deceived into attending the meeting. Oshiomhole who was uncomfortable throughout the meeting was calmed down by Senator Mantu. The atmosphere brightened when President Obasanjo shook hands with members of the committee including those he said do not like his face.
“Even if you don’t like my face I will still shake hands with you,” he said, and then proceeded to shake Oshiomhole.
Earlier, security agents had stopped Oshiomhole from driving his four-wheel drive vehicle with NLC flag hoisted in front of it into the villa. He was forced to get down and asked to enter another vehicle that took him into the villa.
