Some residents of Kaduna have expressed worry over the recent increase in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise called petrol.
Don’t increase fuel price,Abubakar warns
The residents urged the Federal Government to enforce compliance with approved pump prices to check inflation and ameliorate the suffering of ordinary citizens.
They said on Monday in Kaduna that the hike in pump price was worrisome as it might affect the prices of goods and services.
NAN correspondent, who visited some filling stations in Kaduna, reports that fuel is sold between N190 and N230 per liter.
Mr. Nura Muhammad, a tricycle rider, said that transport fares had jacked up in the Kaduna metropolis following a hike in pump price.
He said the tricyclics were now charging N70 per drop as against N50 before the fuel price hike.
“Passengers going to Kaduna State University now pay N150 against N100 before,” he said.
A commercial bus operator, Bashir Abubakar, said that most of the filling stations were dispensing fuel above the N165 approved pump price.
He said they now charge N800 as against N700 for passengers traveling from Kaduna to Zaria.
Abubakar blamed the oil marketers for a unilateral hike in prices, and urged the government to monitor their operations and sanction erring stations.
Also, Haruna Salihu, a trader, who decried a hike in transport fares, said that exorbitant charges by motorists would compound the economic hardship being experienced by the masses.
“I now pay N200 as against N100 for transportation from my home to the market, it caused heavy drain in my pockets,” he said.
Mr. Raji Ibrahim, a civil servant, said he spent more on transportation following a sudden surge in fares by motorists.
“I spent over N1,000 in a day on transportation and meal, and it is not enough to cater to my daily routine,” he said.
For her part, Aisha Mamman, a bean cake seller, said she resorted to trekking as she could not afford exorbitant transport fares.
She said the hikes in transport fares would affect the prices of goods and services, and called for palliative measures to cushion its effects on the masses.
It was reported that the Federal Government through the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), on July 21, said the fixed pump price of PMS remains N165 per liter as stipulated in the petroleum product pricing template.
The development was sequel to directives by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) advising its members to adjust the pump price of PMS to a minimum of N180 per liter.
The marketers had told the move was necessitated by the increment in the ex-depot price of PMS by some private depots where they were buying the product from.
However, NMDPRA maintained that petrol was a regulated product and urged marketers to comply with the pricing template.
