By Obinna Unaeze
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Niger has condemned the increase in the pump price of petrol by the NNPC Ltd.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NNPC Ltd. Retail Management approved the upward review of PMS pump price from N617 per litre to N897 per litre effective from Sept. 3.
Alhaji Abdullahi Ability, Vice Chairman of the party in Niger, stated this while addressing newsmen on Thursday in Minna.
He said the increase would further subject Nigerians to hardship and abject poverty.
Ability said that the removal of the fuel subsidy on May 1, had worsened the situation of the common man.
He questioned the rationale behind the increase in the official pump price of petrol from N617 to N860 per litre to N1, 000.
According to him, it is insensitive for a government to increase the fuel pump price at this moment when Nigerians can barely feed.
“How can the government justify the increase in the fuel pump price at a time when the average Nigerian can barely afford basic meals?” he said.
He urged the government to proffer solutions to the economic challenges being faced by Nigerians rather than increasing the price of fuel.
“The fuel price hike is just another blow, pushing already struggling families further into despair,” he said. (NAN)
