Condemnation Trails Fuel Price Increase as Long Queues Disappear in Kaduna

By John Shiklam

Second republic governor of Kaduna state, Alhaji Balarabe, Arewa Youths Forum and the youth wing of the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday condemned the increase in the pump price of petrol to N145 per litre, saying it will cause untold hardship to Nigerians.

 Meanwhile, the long queues at the filing stations within the metropolis  have suddenly disappeared as most stations were seen selling it at the new price of N145 per litre.

Musa said in an interview that the government was insensitive to the plight of Nigerians: “The increase is unpatriotic, insensitive and  will worsen the economic situation in the country.”

He added that Nigerians are “facing massive unemployment, abject poverty and high inflation and this increase will put them in a very precarious economic condition.”

 The former governor urged the federal government to  reverse the price ” because it is not reasonable and the action is very suspicious”.

The Arewa Youth Forum ( AYF), on its part, said the timing for the increase was wrong considering the harsh economic environment Nigerians are going through.

 “It is a wrong timing, people are suffering; I don’t think this government  has a good economic team. They ought to have  sampled the opinion of people before the increase,” the President of the AYF, Gambo Ibrahim Gujungu, said in a statement in Kaduna .

He recalled that even  President Mohammadu Buhari rejected the removal of fuel subsidy in 2012 and wondered why he decided to remove it without even consulting Nigerians.

Also, PDP Youth Forum in Kaduna state, in a statement signed by its President , Mr. Danjuma Sarki, described government action as senseless and cruel.

“It is so callous for a government that has not added any value to the economic well-being of its  people since  assumption of office almost a year ago to dish out such obnoxious policy on the same people that voted it into office.

“There is no justification that despite the decrease in international price of oil, which is today hovering around $45, Nigerians are still made to buy N145/litre.

 “This shows that the present government has lost touch with the yearnings and aspirations of the masses. We believe that no sensible government would contemplate an increase in the price of petroleum product at a time like this when Nigerians are obviously going through  excruciating hardship and lack, where prices of household commodity are avoidably skyrocketing,” Sarki said.

The statement added that “It is absolutely deceptive that Buhari, Osinbajo and the APC who vehemently rejected the deregulation of the downstream sector by the past administration and during the last campaigns promised to reduce the pump price of petrol from N87 to N45 has now decided to insult the sensibility of Nigerian by this increase.

 “We strongly condemned this action of the APC government in its entirety and call on the Nigerian labour Congress, civil society organizations and all well meaning Nigerians to stand up against this heinous act.“