Follow Us on Google
From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
House of Representatives, yesterday, urged the Federal Government to take steps to cushion the effects of rising cost of cooking gas in the country.
It also mandated its Committee on Gas Resources to liaise with Minister of State For Petroleum Resources, Timipreye Sylva, to proffer a lasting solution to high cost cooking gas.
This followed the adoption a motion by Afolabi Rasheed on the “Urgent need to check the persistent increase in the price of Liquefied Natural Gas (cooking gas).”
Rasheed, in his motion, expressed concerns that a kilogram of gas, which was initially sold for N300, now cost between N700 to N850. He said the development has further subjected Nigerians to more hardship.
The lawmaker said according to marketers, the hike in the price of the product is traceable to the recently introduced import charges and Value Added Tax (VAT) by the Federal Government.
Rasheed said it is worrisome that “Nigeria, which is ranked 9th among the countries in the world with the highest reservoir of gas resources with about 207 trillion standard cubits feet as at 2019, would subject its citizens to such hardship arising from high cost of cooking gas.
“A prolonged increase in the prices of essential items, especially during the Yuletide season could have grave social consequences as it could worsen the economic hardship, thus forcing people into resorting to crime and other vices in order to survive.”
