Nigerian Minister Faces Backlash Over Petrol Price Claims

Heineken Lokpobiri, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources in Nigeria, has been criticized for stating that petrol prices are lower in Nigeria than in the United States. Paul Ibe, the media aide to Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, contested Lokpobiri's claim, arguing that nominal prices do not reflect affordability without considering income levels and purchasing power.

Lokpobiri explained that Nigeria cannot arbitrarily lower petrol prices due to global market dynamics, asserting that local production and refining have kept domestic prices below those in the US. He emphasized that crude oil is a globally traded commodity, and even increased domestic production would not significantly affect international price benchmarks.

Ibe countered that the comparison ignored the disparity in earnings between the two countries, illustrating that a Nigerian earning N70,000 monthly could only afford 50 litres of petrol at N1,400 per litre, while a US worker could purchase approximately 981 litres at the federal minimum wage.