The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has blamed the Federal Government over the hyper-inflation that has greeted the Liquified Natural Gas (LPG), commonly referred to as cooking gas.
The union said that it is disheartening to note that the price of refilling 12.5kg cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (cooking gas) has risen by almost 100 pee cent percent over the past one year.
President and General Secretary of PENGASSAN Festus Osifo and Lumumba Okugbawa, who spoke on the issues affecting the populace, which required urgent attention, admonished government at all levels to quickly come together and find urgent solutions to the myriad of issues plaguing the nation to reduce the difficulties faced by the citizens.
According to the union, this is one singular product that is used by several households in the country.
“Currently, the cost of cooking gas has continued in steady climb from average of 4,500 Naira at the beginning of 2021 to the current price of between 8,750 and 10,000 Naira for the popular 12.5kg cylinder.We are worried that most middle to upper class homes, especially in the urban areas, are feeling the pinch.
“The poorer families are going through harrowing experiences trying to cope, more so as the price of kerosene had long taken flight in addition to being scarce in many places. Despite Nigeria sitting on one of the largest gas reserves in the world, we still depend largely on imported gas. Up to 70 per cent of the gas we consume in the country is imported.
“We hereby call on the President to immediately abolish the VAT on gas importation, prevent further slide of the Naira, channel some of the exported gas to domestic use, and provide some form of verifiable palliatives for the lower-class citizens,” the union said.
The union also expressed dismay over the recent directive accompanied with the threat by the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) that Federal Government employees would not be allowed into their offices without proof of vaccination or negative Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests effective December 1, 2021. The union said it considered the directive and alleged threat as unbecoming, draconian and against the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that the government pledged to always uphold.
The association said it had earlier admonished providers of labour to sensitise and advocate for its employees on the advantages of taking COVID-19 vaccines and not to issue threats to the workforce.
