The National Orientation Agency (NOA) says the petrol price increase is a courageous step by the Federal Government to alleviate the sufferings of Nigerians.
Mr Bulus Dabit, the Plateau NOA Director, said in Jos on Wednesday that government could no longer sustain importation of refined products due to the depletion of external reserves.
According to Dabit, increasing the pump price of petrol is a step that should be commended.
‘’The basis for the hike in fuel price is the country’s low earnings from export of crude oil. What it means is that the Federal Government does not have huge reserves to import the product.
’’ The huge foreign reserve, built over the years, has greatly been depleted.
“So, low earnings from crude and low foreign reserve are the main reasons for the hike in fuel price,’’ he said.
The NOA director said that these factors also affected the value of the naira as foreign reserves determined the value of a country’s currency.
Dabit said the government could no longer fund oil majors who imported the product as it discovered that such funding had not led to availability of petrol to consumers.
He urged Nigerians to be patient with the government on the issue, saying that the hike in fuel price would ensure availability of petrol at filling stations and eventually lead to economic stabilisation.
Dabit said that any strike by the labour unions would further increase the sufferings of Nigerians.
He advised the unions to employ dialogue and deliberate with the government.
‘’You cannot fight for Nigerians not to die and use a mechanism to make them die by closing service delivery points,’’ he said.
