The Minority has called on the government and the Oil Marketing Companies (OMC’s) to further reduce fuel prices by some 20 percent as oil prices on the world market continue to tumble.
The call by the minority comes after fuel prices went down by some 4.7 percent on March 17 this year despite promises by the CEO of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) that fuel prices would go down by some 15 percent.
“We believe that by the next pricing window, from what we have seen with the movement of the products, the prices and so forth, we’re likely to see something within the range of 15% reduction,” the Chief Executive Officer of the NPA, Hassan Tampuli said.
Mr Tampuli was speaking to the media on Tuesday, March 10, 2020, following calls from several groups like the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), the Institute of Energy Security (IES) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) for reduction of fuel prices.
In a statement by the Minority, Adam Muktawakilu, ranking member for the Mines and Energy Committee in Parliament stated that due to the level of prices falling on the International markets, prices of fuel must be reduced by not less than 20 percent.
“Since the close of the second week of March 2020, prices of crude and finished products continue to tumble in the international market. The Minority Caucus has analysed the trends in prices of crude and petroleum products since the beginning of the year and is of the firm belief that prices at the pumps should be reduced by at least 20 percent.”
“A reduction of at least 20% is particularly imperative in view of the challenges facing Ghanaians in light of the measures introduced by Government to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The call for an additional reduction of 20 percent takes into consideration the fall of crude oil (31%+) and Petrol ( 50%+) on the international market over the last two weeks.
“A significant reduction in the prices of fuels in non-negotiable as the pandemic is exacting a toll on business and most companies are scaling down their operations with other laying off workers.”
Source: Starrfm.com.gh