Petrol Now N1,430, NLC Asks FG For Wage Award

By Victor Idajili

The Nigeria Labour Congress is demanding a wage award for workers following the jump in petrol price to N1,430 per litre.

NLC President, Joe Ajaero, made the demand in a statement on Wednesday, saying the new price has hit workers hard and worsened the cost of living crisis.

He said while petrol sells for about N1,430 in major cities where it is available, it costs even more in other parts of the country, and the ripple effect is being felt everywhere.

"When transportation costs go up, everything else follows, including school fees, rents, food prices," he said, warning that the increase is pushing more Nigerians into poverty.

Ajaero said the latest hike came just when efforts to get marketers to bring down pump price in line with international crude prices were starting to work, but renewed conflict in the Gulf has driven prices up again.

He said Nigeria should not be suffering this much as an oil-producing country with local refining capacity, and should have a buffer to protect citizens from global shocks.

To cushion the impact, he asked the Federal Government to approve a wage award for workers immediately, sell crude in naira to local refineries that are working, and build up the country's fuel storage capacity to handle emergencies.

He said those steps would create jobs, grow the economy and help with security.

Ajaero said there is nothing wrong with government subsidising its citizens in a crisis, as other oil-producing countries are doing the same. He added that government is already earning extra revenue, making $35 to $40 above the budget benchmark per barrel, amounting to trillions of naira monthly, which he described as a windfall.

He also criticised local refineries for still importing crude, saying it defeats the essence of having domestic refining capacity.

He warned that government cannot watch marketers punish Nigerians in the name of deregulation, especially with elections a few months away.