Due to mounting worries over a probable increase in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as gasoline, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has warned that it will start a nationwide shutdown.
If such a price increase is put into effect, reports indicate that the Trade Union Congress (TUC) has also sided with the NLC’s position.
The NLC President, Joe Ajaero, expressed this viewpoint during a meeting in Abuja and called any potential rise brought on by currency exchange rate swings “illegal.”
Chinedu Ukadike, the national public relations officer of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), responding to questions regarding the potential petrol price increase, pointed out that the cost of petrol is now linked to fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.
He said that “the demand and supply of foreign exchange significantly influence the price of petroleum products and that the escalation in the value of the US dollar relative to the Nigerian naira could lead to an eventual price of around N750 per liter.”
Ukadike went on to explain that multiple factors contribute to the need for an adjustment in petrol prices. “The fluctuating value of the naira in relation to the dollar, as well as the increasing demand for foreign exchange by various sectors, including other manufacturers importing goods, all play a role in determining the price of petrol,” he said.
Further, he disclosed that oil marketers are currently sourcing foreign exchange from the parallel market, as converting funds through the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official window for Importers and Exporters is not straightforward.
“However, the NLC remains resolute in its stance against any potential increase in petrol prices,” Ajaero said on Monday, during an African Trade Union alliance meeting in Abuja, that the NLC is prepared to execute a comprehensive and indefinite nationwide shutdown if petrol prices are raised beyond the existing N617.