Petrol hike will further deepen poverty, jobs lost – NLC

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said that the latest increase in the pump price of petrol will further deepen poverty as production capacities dip.

The Congress added that the increase would lead to more jobs lost with multidimensional negative effects, and therefore, demanded its immediate reversal.

NLC position is contained in a statement signed by its President, Mr Joe Ajaero on Wednesday in Abuja, titled, “What next after increase in pump price?”.

The labour leader said the previous increases had not produce any good result, rather, people only got poorer.

He said the Congress was dismayed by the latest increase in the pump price of petrol without commensurate capacity of Nigerians or mitigatory measures.

“Even following the logic of market forces , we find it an aberration that a private company (NNPCL) is the one fixing prices and projecting itself as a hegemonic monopoly.

“We challenge the government to go to the drawing board and present us with a blueprint for an inclusive economic growth and national development instead of this spasmodic ad hocism and palliative policy.

“It needs no stating the fact that the latest wave of increase has grossly altered the calculations of Nigerians once again at a time they were reluctantly coming to terms with their new realities,” he said.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) had raised the pump price of petrol by 14.8 per cent to N1,030 per litre from N897 across its retail outlets in the FCT.

Earlier in September, the NNPCL had increased the price of the product from N615 to N897.