Nigerians would have a harder time as we advance in light of the World Bank’s recent recommendation that the Federal Government raise the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit or PMS.
The World Bank asserted on Wednesday, December 13, that the government might continue to pay for fuel subsidies, despite President Bola Tinubu eliminating them on May 29, 2023.
The bank asserted that Nigeria’s fuel prices should be raised because they are currently not cost-reflective.
According to the World Bank, the price of gasoline should be about N750 per liter, which is more than what Nigerians presently pay, N650.
In his presentation of the Nigeria Development Update, December 2023 edition titled, “Turning The Corner” (from reforms and fresh hope, to outcomes) on Wednesday in Abuja, the bank’s Lead Economist for Nigeria, Alex Sienaert, disclosed this information.
During the event, Sienaert pointed out that fuel ought to cost N750 per litre according to the official exchange rate.
“It appears that fuel prices are not entirely responding to market conditions, which suggests a partial reimbursement of the subsidy—provided that importation is carried out at the official foreign exchange rate,” he stated.
“We believe that the price of gasoline should be approximately N750 per liter, which is more than what Nigerians currently pay—N650 per liter.”
The nation is experiencing extreme hardship as a result of the fuel subsidy reduction in May of this year.
Remember how the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, or NNPCL, abruptly raised the pump price of PMS in May from N195 per litre to as high as N577 within 24 hours after Tinubu announced the elimination of subsidies?
In certain cities, Nigerians currently pay N650 for a liter, while in other places, the price is higher at N670.
The price of necessities, particularly staple foods, has increased due to the development, making life for the average Nigerian relatively intolerable.
According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Friday, food inflation in Nigeria rose from 31.51% in October to 32.84% in November.
It is thought that the increase would make the majority of people even poorer if the federal government followed the Word Bank’s recommendations.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), and other stakeholders claimed in separate interviews, that the World Bank was indifferent to the suffering of Nigerians.
Citing the nation’s current economic circumstances, they advised the government not to follow the recommendation.
Beson Upah, an NLC spokesman, said the World Bank was unconcerned with events in Nigeria and emphasized that chaos would ensue if the government implemented the World Bank’s recommendation.
Upah claims that the nation has already been “destroyed” by the present fuel price and that further increases to the pump price are unnecessary.
He claimed that the World Bank “has little to no consideration for the Global South and is Globalist North in thoughts and actions.”
If the World Bank cannot recognize the connection between capacity and price, then it is incredibly hypocritical. For a select few with privilege, the minimum wage in Nigeria is N30,000. In the US, where the legislation is upheld, the minimum wage is N1.5 million.
Given this, the government should disregard the World Bank and continue to battle the endemic corruption in the petroleum industry’s downstream sector if it understands what is best for it. He continued, “It must also lower the high cost of governance.”
Similarly, Nigeria’s economic problems were caused by the World Bank, IMF, according to Hon. Debo Ologunagba, the PDP’s national publicity secretary.
The PDP spokesman expressed regret that Nigerians have not yet experienced any government-provided relief since the fuel subsidy was eliminated, emphasizing that the proposal for a hike in fuel prices was ill-considered and inappropriate.
“I have never seen an economy that is doing well that is being teleguided by the World Bank,” he declared. Taking care of the welfare of the people is the fundamental role of the government.
“We are here together because of the advise from the World Bank and the IMF—from the partial withdrawal of subsidies to the full elimination of subsidies, as well as the covert devaluation of the Naira.
“Now that they are pushing for a rise in gas pump prices to keep up with inflation, whose interests are served? The interests of Nigerians or those of the World Bank or IMF?
“You are requesting an increase, but we haven’t felt the effects of the palliatives since the subsidy was eliminated. Why do they have us for? Stupid?
“It is unacceptable and our government must reject calls for fuel pump increases at all costs.”
According to Dr. Yunusa Salisu Tanko, Chief Spokesperson for the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council in the most recent election, the World Bank’s action was an attempt to carry on colonizing African nations.
He said that raising fuel prices would not be the answer to improving Nigeria’s economy and that innovative leadership was the key to resolving the nation’s present issues.
He pleaded with the federal government to see to it that refineries were constructed in each of the nation’s six geopolitical zones, arguing that this would contribute to the collapse of gasoline prices and lower market prices for commodities.
The most heartless thing this government will do, he declared, would be to raise petrol prices once more.
The populace is already living in extreme poverty. Because of the suffering the fuel price has already caused them, they are unable to feed themselves.
“The government lacks creativity, which is why the World Bank is attempting to penetrate our economy.”
“If the price of gasoline is raised to N750 per liter, how can they fool the President of Nigeria into believing that they can revive the economy? Nothing will be fixed by them. To be able to escape a given circumstance, you must have creativity.
“You as a government that has already taken on a great deal of debt must figure out how to get your refineries back up and running.
“In the six geopolitical zones of the nation, refineries may be constructed, and private organizations may also be permitted to build there.
“Once this is finished, items will be refined by refineries at a low cost, bringing the price down from N670 to N300.
“The World Bank is working against the interests of our own people in order to further the interests of itself and its people. That’s why making bold choices is necessary to achieve that.
“The World Bank will keep giving you a brand-new colonial system if you listen to them. They have persisted in enslaving nations in Africa. And in this situation, a strong leader is required; sadly, I don’t think Tinubu is one.
But according to Mr. Mathew Adah, a senior member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), “there is no cause for alarm.”
“President Tinubu is an intelligent man,” he said. He won’t start acting merely because the World Bank suggested it. I think he knows what’s best.
“Maybe they are lying if they claim the President is indifferent to the suffering of Nigerians.
“Yes, he does, but Rome was not created in a day. The type of economy the government inherited from the last one is well known to all of us.
Nigerians must have patience. I have no doubt that things will return to normal in due course.