The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, has revealed that the reduction in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol by N5, was done to bring relief to Nigerians and petroleum products consumers.
Ngige made this disclosure on Monday, December 15, at the Old Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa Abuja, while inaugurating the bipartite Plus Technical Committee on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) pricing framework.
According to the minister, the government was no longer involved in fixing petroleum products’ prices in the country.
1st News had reported that the FG, after a marathon meeting with the leadership of organised labour on December 7, 2020, announced a reduction in the pump price of petrol by N5 from N168 to N162.44 effective from yesterday.
However, Ngige said the government did not fix the N162.44 reduced pump price that took off on Monday; saying the new pump price of petrol was gotten from the commercials like demurrage, transhipment and storage.
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Ngige said: “Make no mistake about it, the government has taken the back seat. The government did not fix the price that took off from today (yesterday). It was a price reduction gotten from the commercials like demurrage; transhipment; and storage;” adding that the committee is expected to do more to enthrone transparency in the area.
Furthermore, he described the Technical Committee as a consequential fallout of the outcome of bipartite meetings between the Federal Government and organised labour, represented by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC); and Trade Union Congress (TUC); to fashion out a mechanism and framework to monitor and stabilise PMS pump price.
“This resulted in a downward review of the price from N168 per litre to N162.44 per litre. We also agreed that we shall inaugurate a committee; just like we did in the power sector; where we set up a committee on electricity tariff to look at the rate of electricity,” Ngige said.
