The Katsina State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has rejected the new pump price of petrol announced by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
The state NLC Chairman, Dr. Hussaini Hamisu, who disclosed this Tuesday in an interview with some journalists in Katsina, said the development would not augur well for Nigerians.
NNPCL was reported to have directed its outlets nationwide to sell fuel at N617 per litre.
But Hamisu, during the media chat, described the development as another way of aggravating the hardship faced by Nigerians, especially the downtrodden in communities across the country.
He said the primary responsibility of every government is to bring succour to its citizens “but since this government came in, workers and the general public have been experiencing hardship”.
According to him, “I don’t think this increment will augur well for Nigerians. We are not in support of the increment. So, I am using this medium to appeal to the government to critically look at ways of solving this problem.
“Instead of giving N8,000 to individuals, which I believe those that are supposed to get that money will not get it; the politicians will bring the names of their sons, daughters and their maids to collect it.
“The downtrodden who are suffering will not get that money. So, the government should consider using that N500 billion to purchase buses that can be distributed nationwide.”
He said if the federal government can use the N500 billion to purchase buses and distribute them to each state, it will significantly cushion the effect of transportation faced by Nigerians.
He therefore urged the government, to as a matter of urgency, bring human capital development policies and innovations that will tackle the difficulties bedeviling workers and other Nigerians.