The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general election, Mr Peter Obi described the recent hike in the price of petrol products as “unfortunate and insensitive”. Obi made this known in a statement he titled “Reversing the Sudden Fuel Price Increase”, on his X.com account, on Saturday. PUNCH Online reports that transportation costs skyrocketed in the Federal Capital Territory following the hike in the price of petrol by some stations of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited in Abuja on Wednesday. The stations of the national oil company raised the retail price of petrol to N1,030 from N897 per litre across multiple NNPCL stations in the FCT. The new price, the second increase in one month, represents a 14.8 per cent or N133 rise. According to Obi, the increase in fuel prices has far-reaching negative consequences for the current Nigerian economic survival and well-being of Nigerians. He stated that reversing the sudden price hike relies on the hands of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri and President Bola Tinubu. The statement reads, “As Nigerians continue to groan under extremely difficult economic conditions, largely caused by the Federal Government’s wrong policy choices, the NNPCL has once again raised the price of fuel without providing any explanation. This is both unfortunate and insensitive, considering the wide-ranging negative consequences for our economic survival and well-being. “This is neither how an economy’s resources should be managed nor how a nation should be governed. In this new measure, there is neither sound economics nor necessary compassion. We are told that the NNPCL is now a limited liability company, regulated by agencies such as the NUPRC and NMDPRA, yet there seems to be growing confusion about the roles and responsibilities of the NNPCL and these regulating bodies. “Interestingly, both the NNPCL and the regulatory agencies are supposed to be under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, with the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria serving as the substantive Minister. Who, in this arrangement, is regulating who? With the unprecedented but avoidable hardship that Nigerians are enduring, the responsibility for providing a full explanation, offering alternative options, and most importantly, reversing the sudden price hike falls squarely on the Honorable Minister of Petroleum Resources/President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “We hope and pray that he acts in the best interest of the majority of Nigerians, who are living under unnecessarily precarious conditions, and that he does so before his return from his working vacation. To casually inflict such a draconian measure on the populace from the comfort of an annual vacation amounts to taking the people’s welfare lightly and for granted. A new and more compassionate Nigeria is indeed Possible.” Recall that following the hike, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero, condemned the fuel pump price increase by NNPC, noting that a registered private company should not dictate fuel prices for Nigerians. The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria also threatened to stop operations nationwide following the high cost of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, sold to IPMAN members by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. IPMAN revealed on Thursday that the cost of petrol from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to NNPC was about N898/litre, but noted that NNPC was selling the same product to independent marketers at N1,010/litre in Lagos.

Nigeria is facing a worsening food security crisis, with more than one million additional people experiencing severe food insecurity in 2024 compared to the previous year. This is according to the recently released Food Security Update Report by the World Bank. The report indicated that Nigeria, alongside Ethiopia and Yemen, witnessed a significant rise in the number of people facing acute food shortages. “Conversely, some countries saw improvements. Nations such as Afghanistan, Guatemala, and Kenya reported declines in food insecurity, with more than one million fewer people facing acute food crises, although these countries remained in significant food crisis situations. “On the other hand, 18 countries experienced worsening situations due to factors including intensified conflict and climate-related shocks, such as droughts. Notable examples include Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Yemen, each witnessing an increase of more than one million people facing high levels of food insecurity from the previous year”, according to the report. The report attributed Nigeria’s growing crisis to a mix of climate-induced issues and socio-political instability in various regions. It noted, “In Nigeria, an estimated 1.6 million hectares of land have been inundated, including 342,650 hectares of cropland, affecting 685,770 vulnerable individuals. In Mali, 344,000 people were affected and 1.6 million hectares of land flooded, including nearly 500,000 hectares of cultivated land. “Cameroon, Central African Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Togo have also faced flooding, and northern and northeastern Nigeria and Ghana are experiencing dry spells, with adverse effects on crop production and thus food insecurity. “In total, floods and droughts have affected approximately 3.5 million people, who require emergency support. It is estimated that $50m is needed to help 760,200 communities meet their basic food needs.” Data from the report further showed that domestic food price inflation in Nigeria remained among the highest globally, with food prices increasing by 37.5% year-on-year as of August 2024. The surge in prices had put a strain on household incomes, making it increasingly difficult for low-income families to afford basic food items. The report called for urgent intervention to address the immediate food needs of affected populations while also focusing on long-term solutions to improve resilience against climate shocks. The PUNCH had earlier reported that about 172 million Nigerians were unable to afford a healthy diet, according to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024 report.