By The Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, has apologised to Nigerians for the distress and inconvenience caused by ‘unfortunate information about the hike in fuel price.
In a statement on Friday, Sylva explained that neither he nor President Muhammadu Buhari had approved the increase in the retail price of petrol to N212 per litre.
He said irrespective of the source of the information, “I want to assure you that it is completely untrue.”
“You are all aware that for the past few months the government has been in consultation with organized labour to find the least painful option to respond to the global rise in the price of crude, which in turn has inevitably led to an increase in the price of PMS. It is unthinkable that the government would unilaterally abandon these discussions and act in the manner suggested by the information under reference,” he stated.
According to Sylva, cynicism and deceit had never been the trademark of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
He added: “I would like to equally assure you that the engagement with organized labour and other stakeholders will continue even as the calculations to arrive at a reasonable price regime are being done; all in good faith, and you will be availed of the final outcome at the appropriate time.”
BlackBox Nigeria reported that the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), in a new monthly template published Thursday night, said the price of PMS has soared to N212.6 per litre.
This development met with mixed reactions from Nigerians, as many lamented the accompanying effect of the increase on food prices and transportation.
The PPPRA later deleted the post which was earlier published on its website, http://pppra.gov.ng/pms-guiding-price-for-march-2021/
Meanwhile, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), on Friday, had insisted that there is no increment in the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol.
