Price Hike: Reps threaten arrest of Cement firm mgt over failure to appear

The House of Representatives Joint Committee on the arbitrary increase in the price of cement has threatened to arrest the management of Dangote Cement if it fails to appear at its next hearing. This followed the absence of officials of the cement company during a hearing to address the problem of cement increase in the country on Tuesday. The special panel while advocating for the downward review of cement prices, expressed worry over the increase in cement prices and the untold hardships it has brought upon many Nigerians. It directed the Cement Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and the Central Bank of Nigeria to make appearances before the committee in the next two weeks. This, it said, is to deliberate on measures necessary to address the situation for the benefit of the people. “They want to over-profit without any sense of empathy for the citizens that have given it this platform. I think it calls for a rethink of the position of the government. “On Dangote my ruling is simple. The laws have given us the necessary powers but we owe you a duty of care. We are going to give you one more chance. We are going to communicate a date. “Failure to comply with that date, a subpoena will be issued, a warrant of arrest will be given for you to cause appearance before the National Assembly, and no single individual is bigger than the parliament of his country. No single Nigerian is bigger than the National Assembly,” Jonathan said

Average Price Of 5kg Cooking Gas Hits 8.89% -NBS

The average retail price for refilling a 5kg Cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Cooking Gas) increased by 8.89% on a month-on-month basis from N4,189.96 recorded in September 2023 to N4,562.51 in October 2023. In its Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Cooking Gas) Price Watch (October 2023), the bureau noted that on a year-on-year basis, it increased by 1.76% from N4,483.75 in October 2022. On state profile analysis, Kano recorded the highest average price for refilling a 5kg cylinder cooking gas with N5,181.43, followed by Adamawa with N5,142.86, and Ogun with N5,093.75. On the other hand, Ebonyi recorded the lowest price with N3,971.43, followed by Osun and Edo with N4,000.00 and N4,025.00 respectively. “In addition, analysis by zone showed that the North-West recorded the highest average retail price for refilling a 5kg cylinder cooking gas with N4,738.20, followed by the North-Central with N4,662.62, while the South-East recorded the lowest with N4,088.65. “Also, the average retail price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas increased by 14.04% on a month-on-month basis from N9,247.40 in September 2023 to N10,545.87 in October 2023. “On a year-on-year basis, this rose by 4.93% from N10,050.53 in October 2022. On state profile analysis, Edo recorded the highest average retail price for the refilling of a 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas with N12,536.88, followed by Jigawa with N12,050.00 and Delta with N11,987.50. Conversely, the lowest average price was recorded in Zamfara with N9,050.00, followed by Lagos and Oyo with N9,071.05 and N9,407.14 respectively,” the statistics bureau stated. Analysis by zone showed that the South-South recorded the highest average retail price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder cooking gas with N11,480.60, followed by the North-Central with N10,683.97, while the South-East recorded the lowest price with N9,847.42.

Terminal Operators Responsible For Cooking Gas Price Hike -Marketers

The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGM), Olatunbosun Oladapo, has accused terminal operators of forcing the price of Liquified Petroleum Gas, LPG, (Cooking Gas) up. The NALPGM President Olatunbosun Oladapo, said if the operators continue to adjust the price, then the price of 12.5kg of LPG may hit N18,000 by December. He therefore called on the Federal Government to check the activities of terminal owners, Gas retailers. Oladapo, said that there has been a sudden increment from between N9 million and N10 million per 20 metric tons to N14 million per 20 metric tons. He said if the federal government doesn’t intervene, the price of gas could “potentially reach N18 million per metric ton by December.” He said: “There is a ridiculous hike in gas prices going on right now, and I am afraid that if the Federal Government does not step in to checkmate the activities of these terminal owners, the price could reach as high as N18m per metric ton by December. This means that a 12.5kg could go as high as N18,000. “Terminal owners are hiding under the guise of high foreign exchange to increase the price to further increase the suffering of the masses. “Now, the ordinary man would not be able to buy gas. How many minimum wage earners can afford gas now? Everyone is turning to firewood and charcoal. The surprising thing was that they visited President Tinubu last week, and promised to work together with his administration to make life better. “Now they have come back and started doing something else. Where are all the palliatives and buses they promised to donate? We have not seen anything.” The NALPGM President had in August hinted that Nigerians may pay higher for cooking gas from mid-August 2023. He attributed the reasons for the expected increase to rising international prices, high tax rates, high prices of vessels, forex scarcity, and Naira devaluation.