Spokesperson to President Bola Tinubu, Sunday Dare, has claimed the president’s approval of a 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel is a bridge and not a burden on Nigerians.
Dare made the assertions in a statement on his X account on Friday, while reacting to Tinubu’s approval of a 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel.
Recall that there has been diverse reactions from Nigerians, stakeholders and economists alike over the new tariffs and their possible impact on the price of fuel and diesel.
In a clarification, Dare said the policy is designed to reverse the fuel and diesel import dependency trend by encouraging local refining, boosting domestic capacity, and ensuring that Nigeria’s oil wealth translates directly into national prosperity.
He noted that the tariff will mark imported fuel as less competitive and encourage local refineries such as Dangote Refinery.
He said as local refining ramps up and supply strengthens, prices of petrol are expected to moderate while jobs, investment, and industrial activity expands.
“It’s no longer news that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved a 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel—a bold and strategic move aimed at reshaping Nigeria’s energy landscape.
“For years, the nation has depended heavily on imported fuel despite being a leading crude oil producer, draining foreign exchange and exporting jobs that should have been created at home.
“This new policy is designed to reverse that trend by encouraging local refining, boosting domestic capacity, and ensuring that Nigeria’s oil wealth translates directly into national prosperity.
“By making imported fuel less competitive, the government is tilting the market in favour of local refineries such as Dangote and other modular plants, laying the groundwork for a self-sustaining and resilient energy sector.
“As local refining ramps up and supply strengthens, prices are expected to moderate while jobs, investment, and industrial activity expand.
“This policy is therefore not a burden, but a bridge — from dependence to independence, from vulnerability to strength,” he wrote on X.
Meanwhile, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Delta State, Ayiri Emami, on Thursday said the new import tariff would impact negatively on Nigerians.
Currently Nigerians, as of Friday morning, buy petrol at N950 and N960 per litre in Abuja.
Bellnews reports that, with the 15 per cent new tariff on petrol and diesel, the price of the product may shoot up to over N1,000 per litre when it is implemented.