Nigerians are facing increasing frustration as petrol prices have skyrocketed to an unprecedented ₦855 per liter at Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) filling stations, particularly in Lagos.
This dramatic surge has intensified the ongoing fuel scarcity, leaving citizens scrambling to secure fuel while struggling with the rising cost of living.
The price hike has sparked outrage across the country, with many citizens taking to social media to express their displeasure. Among them, Nollywood actress and activist Kate Henshaw shared a video on her platform, revealing that her driver encountered the new price hike while attempting to purchase fuel. She highlighted the alarming increase of over ₦200 per liter.
This crisis unfolds almost a decade after the All Progressives Congress (APC), now the ruling party, criticized the former administration of President Goodluck Jonathan for setting petrol prices at ₦87 per liter. In January 2015, the APC had argued that petrol should not cost more than ₦70 per liter, accusing the government at the time of forcing Nigerians to subsidize corruption within the oil sector.
The APC’s 2015 statement, released by Lai Mohammed, denounced the reduction of petrol prices from ₦97 to ₦87 as “tokenism,” given the significant drop in global crude oil prices. The party contended that even at ₦87 per liter, Nigerians were overpaying, subsidizing inefficiencies and corruption within the oil industry.
Fast forward to 2024, with petrol prices now exceeding ₦800 per liter, citizens are questioning the current government’s management of the oil sector and its broader economic impact.
Reflecting on the past, the APC had stated: “When crude oil was selling at $100 per barrel, the landing cost of PMS without subsidy was 125 Naira per liter. Now that the oil price has crashed to about $44 per barrel, the landing cost without subsidy is about 65 Naira per liter. The same goes for diesel, which should not sell for more than 90 Naira per liter.”
The party also criticized Nigeria’s slow response to the global trend of reducing fuel prices, citing examples from Zambia, Tanzania, and the United States, where prices had been significantly reduced.
Now, in 2024, with petrol prices reaching over ₦1000 in some states due to continued scarcity, many Nigerians are left grappling with the contrast between past promises and the current reality.
