Afenifere rejects N1,350 petrol price cap, demands N400/litre
Blames Tinubu presidency for hunger, hyperinflation
Dike Onwuamaeze and Sunday Aborisade in Abuja
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), yesterday commended the federal government’s proposed petrol price-stabilisation mechanism, and called for a six-month plan to reduce petrol pump prices and ease business costs.
The Director General of LCCI, Dr. Chinyere Almona, said that the proposal to establish a ceiling of N1,350 per litre on the ex-gantry or landing cost of petrol, with monthly reviews and public disclosure, represented an acknowledgement by the government that excessive volatility in energy prices has significant consequences for the wider economy.
She, however, noted that while price stability is desirable, stability at an excessively high price is not sufficient to restore business competitiveness.
“Our position is clear: we welcome the government’s intervention to moderate price volatility, but the next step must be a credible plan to bring petrol prices down progressively, sustainably and transparently,” she stated.
According to her, Nigeria needs a mechanism that delivers both price stability and a progressive reduction in petrol prices over a defined period.
She said: “The chamber is concerned that the proposed arrangement, in its present form, may cushion businesses against sudden increases without necessarily bringing down the already elevated cost of energy.
“Nigerian businesses are contending with high electricity tariffs, substantial expenditure on alternative power generation, rising logistics costs, expensive financing and other structural constraints. Petrol price increases compound these pressures, affecting distribution, transportation, production and the cost of delivering goods and services.”
She said that although the proposed ceiling may moderate the immediate transmission of international oil price and exchange-rate shocks, it does not, on its own, guarantee that petrol prices will decline to levels that provide meaningful relief to businesses and consumers.
Furthermore, the LCCI remarked that requiring refiners and importers to absorb temporary cost increases and recover them when market conditions improve may smooth price movements, but it could also create deferred cost obligations.
It said that if these obligations are not transparently accounted for and recovered within clearly defined limits, they could eventually place renewed upward pressure on prices.
Almona said: “The chamber, therefore, urges the federal government to complement the proposed stabilisation mechanism with a six-month ‘Petrol Price Reduction Programme’ designed to deliver progressive, measurable and sustainable reductions in domestic pump prices.
“The LCCI proposes that the government, working with domestic refiners, petroleum marketers, regulators and other relevant stakeholders, should establish a six-month programme with the objective of reducing petrol pump prices by approximately 15–20 per cent from the prevailing national weighted-average price, subject to independently verified supply costs, market conditions and the sustainability of the proposed measures.”
She also recommended five additional measures that would enable the proposed programme to be credible and commercially sustainable.
“First, improve domestic crude supply to refineries. Nigerian refineries should have more predictable access to crude under transparent, commercially viable arrangements. Reliable supply can reduce procurement uncertainty, foreign-exchange exposure and avoidable logistics costs.
“Second, boost the deployment of alternative transportation mechanisms like the CNG initiative, electric vehicle infrastructure, and other interventions that will reduce the cost of moving goods and persons across the nation.
“Third, reduce avoidable logistics and distribution costs. Government should work with industry operators to address transportation bottlenecks, improve storage and distribution infrastructure, and eliminate unlawful charges and rent-seeking practices that inflate the final pump price.
“Fourth, maintain exchange-rate and macroeconomic stability as petroleum supply costs remain sensitive to the exchange rate and international prices, a credible reduction in foreign-exchange volatility would improve price predictability. Fifth, protect commercial viability and fiscal transparency.
“The price-smoothing arrangement must not impose open-ended losses on refiners and importers, discourage investment or create fuel shortages. Any price-modulation mechanism should have clear rules for entry, exit and the treatment of accumulated obligations,” the chamber said.
Meanwhile, the Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has alleged that the President Bola Tinubu administration is presiding over a climate of hardship, hunger and hyperinflation, and called for an immediate cut in the pump price of petrol to between N350 and N400 per litre.
The group also raised the alarm over a wave of improper conduct and intolerance among a section of the political class as parties step up campaigns for the 2027 general election.
In a communiqué issued yesterday after its monthly National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Lagos, Afenifere said it “reviewed the general socio-political and economic situation of the country and observed that a pervasive climate of hardship, hunger and hyper inflation is yet the defining characteristics of the Tinubu presidency.”
The communiqué, made available to THISDAY in Abuja, was signed by the Afenifere National Leader, Oba Oladipo Olaitan, and the newly confirmed Secretary-General, Mr Alade Rotimi-John.
The group said the meeting “decried the casual or footloose carriage of the government respecting its covenant responsibilities on safety, security, the economy, and general well-being.”
Afenifere took particular exception to the government’s plan to stabilise petrol prices.
“Meeting proposed an immediate review of the fuel price to between N350 – N400 per litre so as to ease the general situation regarding the unaffordability of the product,” the group stated.
On the political temperature ahead of the polls, Afenifere was equally blunt.
“Meeting denounced the rising wave of intolerance among a cross section of the political class who make reckless, inflammatory and inciting statements thereby heating up the polity and constricting the democratic space,” the group said.
On internal matters, the group said: “Meeting approved the appointment of Mr Alade Rotimi-John to the substantive position of Secretary-General of Afenifere.”