The Federal Government yesterday moved quickly to douse speculations that it was planning to increase the pump price of petrol.
Denying the rumour, which had created some unease in the country, government said it was sticking to the agreement with the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) in June last year that it would not increase the pump price of petroleum products for one year.
The Minister of State for Energy (Petroleum), Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, told State House Correspondents in Abuja that the Federal Government�s agreement with labour unions that there would be no more hike in the prices of petroleum products until June 2008 was still in place.
Ajumogobia said government had no intention whatsoever for now to increase prices of petroleum products, as there was a standing agreement between the government and organised labour.
�Government had an understanding with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) that until June 2008 there will be no upward adjustment of prices of petroleum products. Government is committed to honour the agreement with NLC. Government has no intention to increase prices. I was just contributing to a very sensitive debate, and that is all,� he said.
Ajumogobia had been reported on Friday in the media as dropping hints of an imminent increase in petrol price at a conference in Abuja where he represented the Vice President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.
But yesterday, the minister said he only bared his mind while contributing to the debate on the current pricing of oil and gas and related products in Nigeria and allegedly made a case for an increase.
The minister said he was clarifying his statement to swiftly heal the psychological wound his alleged comments might have inflicted on the minds of Nigerians.
He said the President Umaru Musa Yar�Adua-led government believed so much in the rule of law and was not ready to renege on the gentleman agreement he entered with organised labour.
The minister implored Nigerians to ignore the reports as government was not that insensitive to the plight of the people as to give such false fuel price hike as a Christmas or Sallah gift to them.
He warned those expecting a boom in business during the yuletide and Sallah period as a result of the reports by hoarding petroleum products in order to make more money at the detriment of the people to stir clear of such sharp practices as anybody caught shall be dealt with according to the law.
Ajumogobia referred to government and the media as partners in development process and appealed to newsmen to ensure that in the discharge of their responsibilities issues are presented accurately and in such a way to aid better understanding by the public and avoid unnecessary tension in the society.
�This is an appeal to the media. We are partners in development, those of us in government and those of you who project government and disseminate information. We are partners in development and as such we have the same goal of ensuring that our people are well informed about issues,� he said.
�I think it puts on you a huge responsibility to ensure that, especially where certain issues are being discussed, the reports are completely accurate. I just want to reiterate that government has no intention and indeed it has not been discussed that government is effecting any increase in the prices of petroleum products,� he said
TUC President, Comrade Peter Esele, also spoke about the agreement in an interview with THISDAY, saying labour unions believed in the agreement reached with government and believed, that for a government that believes in rule of law, the agreement would be honoured.
�If it must be increased, it can�t be done by fiat, all those stakeholders must be involved. If it must be increased, issues of the economy that are the safety nets for the citizen must also be addressed,� he said.
But yesterday, the House of Representatives asked the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to account for the 450,000 barrels of crude oil collected daily from Nigeria in the last two years and sold at the International market so as to meet the demands of the local market.
The House said since the refineries had not been functioning and NNPC had been taking 60 per cent of the daily crude requirements of the local refineries, which it has been selling to import refined products, then it should account for the money realised so far.
Chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Upstream, Hon. Tamarautare Brisibe, who represents Burutu Federal Constituency of Delta State told THISDAY that the reason behind the query to NNPC was because of the corporation�s inability to account “for what they did, where they refined the products, what they sold and the quantity brought back to the country.”
Brisibe said there was the urgent need to get the details ironed out so that the budget of the corporation and the different agencies under it could be properly scrutinised and adjusted by the House.
He said the House was not happy that the Federal Government could be talking about a possible increase in the pump price of petroleum products now when the last increase caused a lot of problems.
“NNPC has been collecting 450,000 barrels per day which is the 60 per cent crude oil requirement of Nigeria. We want to know what they did with it, and how they also meet up with the remaining 40 per cent which was before then imported. We need all the details. We must be seen to be transparent, �Brisibe said.
�The NNPC officials can�t be lifting crude for refining abroad without keeping proper records of how much they realised, the refineries where the crude was refined and even what they have done with the by products that come with refined crude.
�All these details we need to know. When we have such records, it can then guide us to determine how much we have made and if we are improving or going back wards,� he said.
The lawmaker also told THISDAY that some House members had begun moves to sponsor a bill that would determine how and where the excess crude oil proceeds should be paid into and how the money could be utilised.
�The excess crude fund the Federal Government has been sharing with the states is illegal so we have to enact a law to legalise the fund so that payments could be remitted to the proper account and not shared because it is illegal,� Brisibe said.
The Minister of State Finance, Mr. Remi Babalola, had hinted that the end of the sharing of the excess crude oil proceeds was under way.
Babalola had stated this when he appeared before the House Committee on Finance to explain the details of the 2008 Appropriation Bill.
The minister had while interfacing with the lawmakers in the Committee Room 3 of the National Assembly explained that the Federal Government and governors had finally agreed not to share the excess crude oil proceeds any longer.
The minister told the House that the states had agreed that the Federal Government should always keep part of the money for the rainy day.
“The state governors have agreed. They want the Federal Government to keep it as excess crude. We are working on a standardised fund and the laws are going to be in place with the National Assembly assisting us to enact the law. When the stabilisation fund is in place it can be invested and returned as generated. We have learnt our lessons the hard way and we are going to plan,” Babalola had said.
He also stated that “the decision is not that of one or two persons to take. But we want the National Assembly to make it legal. It should not be a bonus to share in the first place.�
Dec22007