The House Of Representatives on Tuesday commended the decision of President Bola Tinubu on fuel subsidy removal.
This followed a motion of urgent public importance by a member, Jimoh Olajide.
The House further appealed to Nigerians to be patient and prayerful to allow the President deliver on his promises.
This is even as due to the President Bola Tinubu’s announcement of removal of fuel subsidy triggered off fuel scarcity as dealers closed most of their sales outlets nationwide causing long queues in some filling stations who resorted to sell at exorbitant price per liter nationwide.
A liter of fuel now sells as high as N450.
On Monday during his inaugural speech at the Eagle Square in Abuja, Tinubu said the era of subsidy payment on fuel has ended, adding that the 2023 Budget made no provision for fuel subsidy and more so, subsidy payment is no longer justifiable.
“The fuel subsidy is gone,” Tinubu said, noting that his government would instead channel funds into infrastructure and other areas to strengthen the economy.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has since backed Tinubu on the removal of fuel subsidy.
However, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) said the President cannot unilaterally take a decision on subsidy removal, saying that there was a reason the immediate past administration of Muhammadu Buhari pushed the “sensitive issue” to the new government.
Fuel queues have since resurfaced across the country since the presidential pronouncement as Nigerians forage for the premium product.
At the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, the announcement of subsidy removal triggered of panic buying and long queues of vehicles in any available filling stations just few minutes after the announcement as most filling stations quickly close shops.
Tuesday morning was hectic as commuters were faced with hike in transport fares just as long queues dotted every filling stations.
In Abia state, reports by Daily Post indicates that following the removal of the petrol subsidy by President Bola Tinubu, prices of petroleum products have skyrocketed.
Also, most petrol stations in the city closed the gates to their facilities on Tuesday and displayed ‘No Fuel’ signs at their entrance.
The few that opened for business sold petrol, also known as Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), between N520 and N550 per litre, while black market operators sold at N600.
It was also a bad day for truck drivers, who could not buy diesel to fill their vehicles’ tanks.
As a result, commercial transporters hiked transport fares by 100 percent.
Intra-city shuttle buses and tricycle operators, known as Keke NAPAP, charged N200 and N250 for a drop, away from the previous N100 they collected.
The state capital, Umuahia, experienced low vehicular movements as commercial transporters left their vehicles at home, forcing passengers to trek for long distances to their destinations.
Similarly, commercial banks in Umuahia did not open their halls for customers on Tuesday.
In all banks visited by our reporter at Library Avenue, popularly known as ‘Bank Road’ and at Umuwaya Road, customers were seen stranded as they were told by security men, to come back on Wednesday, leaving the customers frustrated.
In some of the banks, however, Automated Teller Machines, ATMs were dispensing money to customers.
No notice was pasted on the walls of the banks about the non-service inside their halls, but a staff in one of the banks said it was a careful security decision.
The staff, who pleaded anonymity, said his bank was studying the security situation in the town.
Asked if their branch’s closure stemmed from the May 30 ‘Biafra Day’ declaration by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, the staff declined a response.
It would be recalled that IPOB declared May 30 as a ‘compulsory’ sit-at-home to celebrate Biafra Day.
-Channels with additional report by OPTIMUM TIMES
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