Nigerians Will Not Buy Petrol More Than ₦610 Per Litre If I Become President – Olawepo-Hashim

A factional 2027 presidential candidate of the Accord Party, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has promised that Nigerians would not have to pay more than ₦610 per litre for petrol if he is elected as president.

He revealed that the targeted fair price is ₦605 per litre and the cost could drop as low as ₦200 to ₦300 per litre if production costs are gotten right and the targeted exchange rate is achieved.

Naija News reports that Olawepo-Hashim, who spoke during an interview, said the figures can be achieved without reducing government revenue or allocations to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).

According to him, the targeted price reduction would not amount to artificial subsidy.

“N605 per litre is our starting sustainable price for petrol. Nobody will buy petrol above N610 under our government. It could be as low as N200.

“N605 is the starting sustainable price. If we get production costs right and achieve the exchange-rate target, the price could come down to N200 or N300,” Olawepo-Hashim said.

He argued that instead of automatically benchmarking domestic prices against international market prices, the focus should be on determining the actual cost of producing, refining, transporting and distributing petrol in Nigeria.

The Accord presidential candidate described the previous justification for petrol subsidy removal as “accounting magic.”

He added that the difference between the domestic price and an international benchmark should not automatically be classified as a subsidy loss.

“Any time you sell a product above its legitimate cost of production, refining, transportation and insurance, you cannot call the difference between that price and an international benchmark a subsidy loss. That is the opportunity cost,” he said.

The presidential candidate called for an independent forensic audit of the petroleum value chain in Nigeria to establish the actual cost of delivering a litre of petrol to consumers.

According to him, the auditing should cover crude oil production, contracting, procurement, refining, transportation, storage, insurance, pipeline operations and distribution.

“Show Nigerians the books. Publish the production cost. Publish the refinery cost. Publish transportation. Publish insurance. Publish every margin. Let the data speak,” Olawepo-Hashim said.

He said Nigerians are “effectively bearing” the cost of inefficiencies in the petroleum sector through higher production costs and pump prices, which should not be.

“Before asking Nigerians to pay more, the government must first explain why it costs so much to produce our own oil. If the cost is genuine, show us the evidence. If it is inefficiency, corruption or inflated contracting, fix it.

“The Nigerian people should not pay for inefficiency twice. They should not pay for inflated costs inside the system and then be told that the resulting high price is the inevitable consequence of subsidy removal,” he said.

Olawepo-Hashim said his proposed pricing framework would be anchored on appropriate production costs and exchange rates.

Naira To Dollar Exchange Rate

If elected, Olawepo-Hashim said his government would target a dollar-to-naira exchange rate between ₦525 and ₦700 to the dollar to reduce the naira cost of petroleum-sector inputs and ease pressure across the various sectors of the economy.

“We will achieve this strictly by ensuring appropriate production cost and appropriate exchange rate,” Olawepo-Hashim explained.

He argued that lowering the pump price would not come at the expense of government revenue.

“The reduction will not be at the detriment of government revenue or below current FAAC. We are not going to make petrol cheaper by making the government poorer.

“Our objective is not simply cheap petrol. Our objective is a productive Nigerian economy in which affordable energy, stronger production and stronger government revenue reinforce one another,” he said.

He maintained that government intervention in petrol pricing should not automatically be considered illegitimate, provided it was transparent, targeted and tied to measurable economic objectives.

The Accord party candidate argued that Nigeria does not have to choose between affordable petrol and government revenue as both can be achieved.

“The issue is not whether the government can intervene. The issue is whether government intervention is transparent, productive and accountable. Subsidy should protect Nigerians and the productive economy, not enrich intermediaries.

“Let the data speak. Tell Nigerians exactly what it costs to produce the crude, what it costs to refine it, what it costs to transport it and what every margin represents. Then we can have an honest conversation about subsidy.”

“Nigeria does not have to choose between affordable petrol and government revenue. We can have both. But we must stop using accounting to hide inefficiency and start using economics to build prosperity,” he said.