Protest rocks Benin over unofficial N700/litre fuel price

An ongoing protest has rocked Benin City, Edo State, over an unofficial N700 per/litre hike in the price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, popularly known as petrol.

The protesters, with placards, are asking the state government to set up a price control committee to check the prices of petrol and other essential commodities.

The protest led to the blocking of Sapele road, Ring road, and other significant parts of the city, causing gridlock.

Former Coordinator-General of Edo State Civil Society Organisation, EDOSCO, Omobude Agho, lamented that citizens had suffered untold hardship amid affluence.

He noted that Nigerians could no longer endure hardship caused by the hike in the prices of petrol, describing it as anti-people.

“Fuel has become N700, and minimum wage is still N30,000. He stated that a bag of rice is over N50,000, and the minimum wage is still N30,000”.

Reacting to the protest, the Edo State Governor said his government would do everything to address the problem.

Special Adviser to Edo State Governor on Media Projects, Crusoe Osagie, stated that it would work with relevant stakeholders to address the matter.

It added that the government would set up a monitoring committee within 24 hours to ensure fuel marketers do not exploit citizens.

“The government acknowledges the plight of Edo people, who have had to endure gruelling experiences accessing petroleum products and the exorbitant prices the product is sold for in the state in the last few days.”