The Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN), Oyo State chapter on Friday described the lingering fuel scarcity across the country as a conspiracy among politicians and oil tycoons against the poor.
SPN noted that the scarcity which had continued to have negative effects on the lives of Nigerians was “a consequence of a conspiracy among the ruling, class which included elected or appointed political office holders, their friends in oil business obviously to make more profits and to create a wider atmosphere to continue the loot of the public treasury at the expense of the poor working but suffering masses in preparation for 2019 general elections.”
The party in a press statement sent to DAILY POST by its scribe, Abiodun Bamigboye, however, noted that one of the ways out of the mess was for the leadership of the labour movement to convene a conference to commence deliberation over how to conduct a united struggle for repair of existing refineries and building of new ones by the government and other interested parties.
Bamigboye said “The Socialist Party of Nigeria, SPN, Oyo State Branch, decries the lingering fuel scarcity and sale of petrol above official pump price arising from shortfall in supply and hoarding of petrol across the length and breadth of the country.
“This is a consequence of a conspiracy among members of the ruling class which include elected or appointed political office holders and their friends in oil business obviously to make more profits and to create a wider atmosphere to continue the loot of the public treasury at the expense of the poor working but suffering masses in preparation for the 2019 general elections.
“Leadership of labour movement must convene a conference of the working people to commence deliberation over how to conduct a united struggle for repair of existing refineries and building of new ones by government, nationalisation oil sector linked with demand for higher new minimum wage; payment of all outstanding salary arrears and improvement in living condition!”
Bamigboye added that, “One year into the office, the Buhari-led government increased the pump price of petrol from N87 to N145 in May 2016. The false impression was that the introduction of the over 100% hike in pump price of petrol will permanently end the perennial crisis of hoarding, diversion and smuggling of petrol across the border so as to ensure an adequate and sufficient supply of petrol across the country.
“Today, the situation across the country is such a pathetic one, in the sense that the perennial crisis of long queue and fuel scarcity arising from hoarding of petrol has not only returned on the streets of most Nigerian cities but also the pump price of petrol in most filling stations across the country now hovers between N180 and N300 per litre.”
Bamigboye said his party rejected the artificial scarcity which he described as criminal act of selling a pump price above the standard price.
“SPN condemns and rejects the lingering artificial fuel scarcity, criminal act of selling a pump price of petrol beyond the standard price of N145 by the oil marketers as well as various forms hardship the working people are undergoing as a result of the combination of the on-going crisis of fuel scarcity and hoarding of petrol from one part of the country to another.
“At the same time, SPN maintains that the failure of the Buhari-led government like preceded PDP-led governments to guarantee adequate supply of petrol to Nigerians has further showed that all of the age-long crisis that bedevil the Nigeria oil sector cannot be resolved on the basis neo-liberal policies of privatisation and deregulation of the oil industry.
“It will be recalled that, it is through the imposition of these two neoliberal policies of privatisation and deregulation on the oil sector by the successive governments including the Buhari-led administration, that the ruling class succeeded in handing over the control of the entire oil sector (upstream and downstream) to tiny oil tycoons (international oil companies IOC, local oil industries, oil block owners, oil importer and marketers, ship owners and storage facilities owners etc.) who in reality only run the industry for the profit interest of the tiny caber while the Nigeria government through the National Nigerian Petroleum Co-operation, NNPC only receive bonuses, royalty and taxes
“It is this continuous quest for higher profit among the oil tycoons particularly the oil marketers that are responsible for the hoarding of the petrol across the country by the oil marketers as well as the scarcity of petrol that arose from it. The oil marketers see the higher demand for petrol during the festive period as the opportunity to exploit Nigeria working people in order to satisfy their insatiable greed for higher profit.
“Unfortunately, the Nigeria government and its regulatory agencies in the oil industry (NNPC and DPR) that are statutorily meant to deal with the situation are also culpable. The government and its regulatory agencies created the opportunity for the hoarding owing to their failure to ensure adequate supply of petrol. In addition to this is the fact most leading figure in government and the so called regulatory agencies are one way or the other have an economic and political link with the oil racketeers.
“Take for instance; most Nigeria bourgeois politicians irrespective of political parties often rely on donation from some of the oil tycoons largely to finance the expenses for campaigns during elections. Given this background especially as the 2019 general elections approach, it is understandable why the oil marketers remain undaunted on their clamour for a new hike in pump price despite all of the threats and directives by the DPR and NNPC.
“Except the members of the ruling class in government allow the oil racketeers to make their super profits now, they may forfeit their chances of getting enough donation to finance their election expenses comes 2019 general election.
“It is in view of this, SPN doubts the sincerity behind the action of DPR which had been reported to have sealed up some filling stations that allegedly sold a pump price of petrol beyond N145 in some cities across the country.
“Aside the fact that, the DPR action is yet to bring about a significant reduction in the level of hardship Nigerians are undergoing as a result of fuel scarcity, the cosmetic action itself is suspected to be a ploy by the agency to justify the spending of its budgetary allocation for 2017 which might have been looted or shared among the top ranked officer as often reported in other sectors of the economy.
“It is in the light of this background, that SPN concludes that the on-going fuel scarcity is a conspiracy among members of the ruling class which include political office holders; oil tycoons and some of the regulatory agencies like NNPC, DPR to deepen their respective self-serving agenda at the expense of the working people who are currently the victims of the untold hardship arising from the lingering fuel scarcity.
“The implication of this therefore, is that except the working people through their collective struggle reclaim the oil industry from the full domination and control of the few cabers and placed it under a collective ownership and democratic management and control of workers and poor masses, the enormous crisis that continue to bedevil the oil industry as well as other sector of the economy will sooner or later resurface again even if the on-going fuel scarcity eventually subsided as promised by the Buhari-led government.
“It is in the aspiration for a permanent end to the crisis in the Oil industry that, SPN calls on the Leadership of labour movement, particularly NLC, TUC and ULC including civil society organisation like JAF to kick start the process to convene a conference of the working people so as to commence deliberation over how to conduct a united struggle for repair of existing refineries and building of new ones by the government, nationalisation oil sector linked with demand for higher new minimum wage; payment of all outstanding salary arrears and improvement in living condition”, he said.
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