Abuja, Aug. 19, 2024 – Donald Duke, a former Governor of Cross Rivers state, on Sunday said Nigeria should not allow international prices of crude oil to determine prices of locally refines petrol.
Duke gave at the advice in Abuja at the Teens Career Conference of The Everlasting Arms Parish TEAP of the Redeemed Christian Church of God RCCG.
He said the Federal Government should fix prices of locally refined petroleum products in a way to discourage being smuggled to neighbouring countries.
“We can fix the price of our oil. We don’t have to allow the rest of the world determine the price of our oil for our own consumption. We can say this is how we are going to do it, and monitor it in such a way that it serves us and not go to other countries.”
Duke said the major cause of inflation in Nigeria is fuel cost, adding that with appropriate prices of oil products, the current high inflation rate would go down.
“You know why you are having inflation? High energy. So, if the cost of energy, fuel goes up, inflation will go up, because you are going to transport your food, you are going to transport other things, people.
“I am just giving you that as an example. If, for instance, fuel was N700 per litre and then today it rises N per litre, inflation will almost double. If the cost of electricity increases, it also inflates.
“But let us look at this. This is a country that flares gas. That is energy. It is a country that has oil. We can fix the price of our oil. We don’t have to allow the rest of the world determine the price of our oil for our own consumption.
“We can say this is how we are going to do it, and monitor it in such a way that it serves us and not go to other countries. That is very important.
“The second thing is, all this energy, gas that we are flaring, has it not occurred to us to use it for the sake of our own people? Just that alone will crash this inflation you are talking about.
“So, when you look at it, there is no problem that cannot be solved”. (GBN)
