‘It’s an overkill’ — NUJ kicks against hike in pump price of petrol

The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) has asked the Federal Government to take appropriate actions to mitigate the impact of the petrol subsidy removal on Nigerians.

The union made the call in a statement signed by Shuaibu Leman, its national secretary, on Tuesday.

The petrol pump price surged to N617 per litre in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and N568 a litre in Lagos and other places on Tuesday.

Reacting to the development, NUJ said it was alarmed by the new pump price effected on Tuesday by independent marketers.

“The Nigeria Union of Journalists is alarmed at the just-announced increase in the pump price of premium motor spirit (PMS) to N617 per litre in Abuja and N568 in Lagos respectively,” the statement reads.

“This development has already triggered astronomical increases in transportation costs, with prices of food items soaring almost beyond the reach of many citizens, even as users of generators to power their homes are already groaning uncontrollably under the present situation.

“While we applaud the decision to remove the costly subsidies on fuel, however, we had cautioned against a hasty implementation of the policy without putting mitigating measures in place to cushion the excruciating effects.”

The union said it is saddened by the fact that “today most people can hardly commute to work or other places of business without too much stress because the embarrassing sudden surge in petrol prices has made it so”.

“We believe that this sudden decision is an overkill and urge that the situation should be reversed immediately while adequate measures are considered and put in place to lessen the effects on ordinary Nigerians,” NUJ said.

In his inaugural address on May 29, President Bola Tinubu announced that the petrol subsidy is gone — a  development that allowed market forces to determine the price of the product.