The sudden surge in fuel prices has driven transport fares to triple their usual prices forcing Nigerians to consider leaving their jobs which can barely pay for commuting.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC) increased the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, by 67 percent from N568/litre to N 950/litre at its outlets.
Nigerians on X took to social media to describe the current fuel situation in Nigeria as traumatic, saying that it has affected transport fares which consumes a major part of their salaries.
“Many young Nigerians will be resigning from their places of work this month (September) because they can no longer cope with the increase in transportation fare and petrol without an increase in their salary,” Chude with X handle @Chude_, wrote on X.
“People are spending as much as 40k a week just to go to work…” he added.
Africa’s most populous nation is belaboured with an increasing rate of unemployment.
According to a new report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the unemployment rate for the full year of 2023 was 5.4 percent. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, unemployment rate rose to 5.3 percent in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024, up from 5.0 percent in the third quarter (Q3) of 2023.
Another X user with handle @Iamjudith17 in a tweet said, “I now trek halfway before entering any vehicle.”
The NBS report noted that the proportion of workers in wage employment rose to 16.0 percent in Q1 2024, a 3.3 percent increase from 12.7 percent in Q3 2023. By gender, 20 percent of males were in wage employment, compared to 12 percent of females.
Wage employment was also higher in urban areas, at 21.8 percent than in rural areas, where it stood at 8.1 percent.
Data shows that nearly 116.6 million Nigerians fall into the working-age population with only about 84.1 million actively employed, putting 32.5 million people unemployed.
A lot of employed Nigerians might be adding to the unemployed number if real solution is not provided to tackle soaring transport fares.
For Oluwafemi who resides on the mainland part of Lagos, he has had to resign from his job when he realised that a huge chunk of his salary was spent on transport.
“I resigned since last year when fuel prices went from N128/litre to N625/litre. I can’t cope with going to the Island from the mainland three times a week on a salary less than N150,000,” Oluwafemi with X handle @Teekay4lyf1 tweeted.
Similarly, MariaHarlod said she had to resign in July of 2024 when she could no longer cope with the hike in transport fare. “I resigned in July. I couldn’t deal.”
Dayo Ojo with X handle @DayoOjo said that companies have also started to shut down because of a decline in patronage.
“As people are contemplating quitting their jobs because of transport fares, company owners are also suffering because of low sales and higher interest rates. It’s a huge economic mess we find ourselves,” Ojo tweeted.
Costs of transportation have jumped in the last weeks. Obalende to Ikoyi now costs N300 as against N200 in August. Also, Costain to Oshodi rose to N1,700 from N1,000. It now costs N2,000 from Ibeju-Lekki to Obalende as against N1,500.
In Ikeja, Maryland, Ikorodu, and other parts of Lagos, petrol prices have soared to as high as N1,000 per litre, intensifying the struggle for fuel and this trend is also observed in Ogun State and even in the nation’s capital, Abuja.
“I’m a cab driver. Hardly will you find a ride that gives you joy after you end it. People are not booking as well. N20,000 may not give you N40,000 if you are careful,” said Alade with X handle @aladepreacher.
(BusinessDay)
