Youths reject fuel price, electricity tariff hike

Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSYL), has condemned the recent hike in fuel price and electricity tariff by the Federal Government.

In a statement at the weekend by its President- General, Goodluck Egwu Ibem, and Secretary General, Kanice Igwe, the body regretted the development.

“COSEYL, the apex socio-political youth group in the South East, regrets the sudden hike in the cost of utility bills at a time when palliative support should have been given to consumers,” the statement said.

The coalition added: “More lamentable is the statement credited to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Timipre Sylva) that government was deregulating the downstream and midstream sector of the petroleum industry and that the policy does not represent nor reflect its position.

“COSEYL wishes to remind the Federal Government that we now have what is termed under-recocery payment where the Federal Government, through the NNPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation) markets solely the products through NNPC’s marketing subsidiary, Petroleum Products Marketing Company, PPMC.

The marketers – most of whom belong to the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) buy at ex-depot price and resell to the final consumers.”The group criticised IPMAN for saying it does not have any standing order regarding price modulation.