"However, according to statistics from the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPRA) and National Bureau of Statistics, getting petrol to Nigerian ports costs N117.74 per litre. And because of deliberated gross inefficiency at the Nigerian ports, an additional cost of N6.25 per litre is incurred. The petrol is usually stored at the ports. It is not transferred directly from the ships to the trucks and so the ports charge N3.00 for storage and an administrative cost of N15.00. Other costs include a bridging fund of N3.95 and then the dealers add their margin of N1.75 per litre. The transporters add their own margin of N2.70, while filling stations add a margin of N4.60. So the cost of fuel at petrol stations comes to N138.19 per litre, or approximately N140.00 per litre. And because it is sold for N65 per litre, the federal government pays the shortfall of N75.00 or thereabout on every litre of petrol. This extra N75.00 called subsidy, is what the government says will bankrupt the nation if it is not stopped forthwith.
"If you have followed me so far, it will be clear to you that the federal government is not subsidising the cost of production of refined oil in our nation. What the government is subsidising is the alternative cost of importation. This shows clearly that our leaders have allowed their laziness to envelope the entire nation so that we have corporately become a lazy nation according to the biblical definition. In Proverbs 12:24, the Bible states that ****The lazy man does not roast
what he took in hunting, But diligence is man's
precious possession****.
"Simply put, due to laziness and lack of diligence, our leaders cannot refine enough crude oil for our consumption."
- Pastor Tunde Bakare