How FG Gazetted Fuel Subsidy Removal Secretly – Investigation

 

Olatunde Dodondawa

The Federal Government of Nigeria has secretly gazetted subsidy removal on premium motor spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol without the involvement of key industry stakeholders.

According to an investigation by Borderless News, a leading online newspaper, on March 20, 2020, with the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCON, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) made certain regulations which summarily removed fuel subsidy on petrol without any inputs from the labour unions, civil society organizations and other stakeholders.

According to the investigation, the regulations were gazetted on March 27^th, 2020, indicating that fuel subsidy on petrol has been legally removed without the passage of petroleum industry bill (PIB).

The Gazette titled: Market Based Pricing Regime for Premium Motor Spirit Regulation, 2020, stated that “In exercise of the powers conferred on it by section 7 and 24 of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Authority (Establishment) Act No 8 of the 2003 and all other powers enabling it in that behalf, the PPPRA with the approval of the President makes the following Regulations:

“The price cap per litre in respect of the premium motor spirit is removed from the commencement of these regulations. From the commencement of these regulations, a market-based pricing regime for premium motor spirit shall take effect.

“The agency shall monitor market trends and periodically advise the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and Oil Marketing Companies on guiding market-based price. The price of premium motor spirit advised by the agency shall be the guiding retail price at which the product shall be sold across the country.

“These regulations may be cited as the market-based pricing regime for premium motor spirit regulations 2020.”

However, it was also explained in a note to the Gazette that the regulations seek to complement and enforce the provision of the PPPRA (Establishment) Act 2003 and to notify the general public of a market-based

pricing regime for premium motor spirit with effect from 20^th March 2020.

It may be recalled that the Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari, said in April 2020 that the era of fuel subsidy is gone forever.

“There would be no resort to either fuel subsidy or under-recovery of any nature. NNPC will play in the petroleum marketplace, just like another marketer in the space.”

However, a lawyer who pleaded anonymity told the Borderless News that the process of gazetting includes passage, by the National Assembly, of a regulation or amendment to a law in form of a bill and subsequent signing of such passed bill into law by the President after which it will now be gazetted.