ECONOMY-NIGERIA: Petrol Hike Endears Few to Abubakar

By Toye Olori Reprint | | Print |

Toye Olori

LAGOS, Dec 28 1998 (IPS) - The popularity of Nigerian leader General Abdulsalami Abubakar took a nose-dive recently following a petrol price increase, which has labour leaders and students threatening to take to the streets.

During a telephone programme aired on a privately-owned radio station on Monday (Dec. 28), caller after caller took Abubakar and his government to task for the fuel hike which came into effect on Dec. 21 as Nigerians prepared for the holiday season.

“He (Abubakar) has become unpopular with Nigerians including me, because he has allowed himself to be used by those who want to ruin him to benefit from the increase in the pump price of petroleum products. He is a nice man, but last week’s increase has made him unpopular,” one caller said.

Another caller said: “As for fuel management, I give him zero. It was not this bad even in Abacha’s time. We are importing more fuel now,” said the caller who simply gave his name as Bosun.

The Nigerian government washed its hands of the price increase which saw independent petroleum marketers adjusting their metres at petrol stations nationwide from 13 U.S. cents to 29 cents a litre.

According to Colonel Sam Tell, the Director of Information , the government merely “handed over the appropriate pricing of fuel to the major marketers who from henceforth are to determine the pump price of fuel according to what the market dictates”.

The petrol hike has fuelled a possible showdown between Abubakar’s government — which has set Africa’s most populous nation back on a track towards civilian rule — and labour and civic leaders.

Pro-democracy and human rights groups, labour leaders and students are planning mass protests for January if the petrol prices remain at the new level.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), an umbrella of 26 industrial unions, said the government must rescind the decision or face mass action from the Nigerian workers.

“The increase is unacceptable and if not reversed, the Congress will not be in a position to guarantee Nigerian workers’ reaction thereafter,” the NLC said in a statement.

“We in the labour movement and Nigerian workers are of the view that the current price increases are not premised on economic rationalism…,” the labour group added.

It stressed that Nigerians are suffering tremendous economic hardship and any additional burden imposed on the people, could lead to unpleasant consequencies.

The United Action for Democracy (UAD), an umbrella body of 46 pro-democracy and human rights organisations in Nigeria, has threatened to make the country ungovernable for the military if the hike is not reversed.

The UAD was in the vanguard of the mass protests against the rule of the late General Sani Abacha. Through the use of leaflets, the organisation is calling for mass action against the fuel hike.

Sylvester Odion-Akhaine, the UAD’s Secretary, said “…no serious government will sit down and allow a regime of speculators and economic bandits to control its economy…”

Odio-Akhaine argued that the failure of Abubakar’s government to find a solution to the oil-rich country’s long-standing petroleum crisis is a “failure of governance”.

Nigeria’s students also have added their voices to the call for mass action against the fuel hike, and have threatened to disrupt the transition to civilian rule and the World Youth Football Competition to be hosted by Nigeria in early 1999. The deadline for the completion of the transition programme is May 29, 1999.

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has given Abubakar’s government a deadline of Jan. 25 to reverse the petrol hike.

“The hike in price is arbitrary, totally unacceptable and by this, General Abubakar has demonstrated his total lack of management skill,” Obinyan Isaac, NANS spokesperson, said.

Some top government officials however, have tried to defend the price increase. Col. Theophilus Bamigboye, the military administrator of the Western State of Osun, said the price increase was in the overall interest of the people as the decision was made to ensure the availability of petroleum products in the country.

“Government is not insensitive to the plight of Nigerians. Instead, it is doing everything to make life easy for the citizens,” he said.