Joe Ajaero, national president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has requested the Federal Government to publicize the identities of individuals and businesses that received fuel subsidy.
He contends that since there is only one player in the industry and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is a private limited corporation, market forces cannot be used to justify price increases at the petrol pump.
Ajaero stressed the need for additional information surrounding the payment of fuel subsidies in an interview with Arise Television on Sunday night. He also stressed the importance of comprehending the Nigerian fuel subsidy situation and called for transparency.
“We need to know who received these subsidies and how the money was spent. Please provide the names of the individuals and businesses that received these subsidies. Why are the choices that we previously agreed upon not functioning, he questioned.
Comrade Ajaero further emphasized the absence of market forces in the event that the Dangote Refinery continues to be the only manufacturer of petroleum products in the nation.
He questioned why the refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna were not operating and underlined the significance of having a number of companies in the industry in order to fully understand market forces in the downstream sector.
He warned that if Dangote remains the only player, fuel prices could rise to N1000 per liter by December and questioned the logic of letting market forces determine fuel pricing when there is only one participant.
In conclusion, the NLC President reaffirmed that there is no disagreement over the choice to move forward with a strike on June 7, 2023.