Former presidential media aide, Reno Omokri on Tuesday declared that President Bola Tinubu does not have control over the price of petrol in the country.
According to him, the days when Presidents determine the price of petrol is gone forever with the removal of fuel subsidy and only market forces determine the price of petrol.
He made the submission in a Twitter post on Tuesday following the sudden increase in petrol price to N617 per litre.
He tweeted: “President Tinubu has no control over the price of fuel. Those days are gone FOREVER. Market forces now control the price of petrol. So, the pressure should not be on the President over the cost of fuel. Let the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria deal with that.”
What Tinubu Needs To Do
Omokri in his post added that what Tinubu needs to do is to increase the current minimum wage from ₦30,000 to at least ₦75,000. He said failure to do that, the president may lose the support he came into office with.
According to Omokri, the Nigerian government can surely afford to pay a better wage to workers.
“What we should pressure the President on is the minimum wage. The current minimum wage of ₦30,000 is grossly inadequate when compared to the current cost of living in Nigeria. President Tinubu calls himself Asiwaju, meaning the progressive that leads the way.
“It is not very Asiwaju-like when Governors are unilaterally increasing salaries to help workers cope with the rising cost of living, and Asiwaju Tinubu has not led the way. Nigeria’s minimum wage should be increased to at least ₦75,000. And President Tinubu must lead the way in facilitating that. Or he will soon lose the huge support base he started off with on May 29, 2023.
“If we have ₦70 billion for Senators and Representatives to buy furniture, if we have ₦65 billion to pay severance to Buhari and Osinbajo and their aides, after their disastrous eight years in office, surely, Nigeria can afford to pay both public and private sector workers a living wage,” he added.
