The ruling party also raised suspicion over the Dubai meeting by PDP’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, his running mate, Mr. Peter Obi; Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki and the party’s National Chairman, Uche Secondus.
PDP had promised that the country will witness a crash in price fuel from the current pump price of N145 per litre down to N90.
In a statement by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Yekini Nabena, yesterday in Abuja, the APC accused PDP of pushing for a return to the inglorious days of subsidy scam.
The ruling party believe there is no way such crash in cost of petroleum products will happen without incurring huge subsidy bills.
“The reported promise by the Presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, to reduce the pump price of petrol from the prevailing N145/Litre to N90/per litre, sounds like a cheap political gist designed to hoodwink unsuspecting voters ahead of the 2019 election,” it said.
APC said that a close study of the well entrenched and verifiable market fundamentals clearly indicates that the promise is virtually anchored on fiction and limited knowledge of the petroleum industry.
APC said that as at the moment, petrol cost under recovery is fluctuating between N60-N70 per litre propelled by vaunting crude oil price of around $81 per barrel, adding that “the only way the bogus promise could be possible albeit unreasonably, is through the re-introduction of the PDP styled subsidy payment schism which almost bled the nation to death.
“It is shocking to note that at a period when the nation is looking ahead to embrace the eventual deregulation of the downstream sub-sector of the oil and gas industry to allow for equitable private sector participation and break the seeming NNPC monopoly of fuel importation, the PDP is plotting a reversal of the spiraling wheel of progress.
“No doubt if the PDP had been clairvoyant enough in its long years’ of ruler ship to fix the local refineries and make them work for the benefit of Nigerians, the country would have reaped bountifully from the gains of higher price of crude oil while optimizing the benefits that comes with local processing of its God given natural resource,” APC said.
On the strategy meeting of PDP leaders in Dubai, APC said the purpose of the trip which was to plot strategies to oust President Muhammadu Buhari” in next year’s election was rather “comic and ridiculous.”
In the statement, the Deputy Spokesman said the agenda of the meeting is spurious as they have held several meetings for the same purpose in Nigeria.
“Clearly, the meetings held in Nigeria did not yield their desired results, hence, a follow up meeting in Dubai. But we know the way of these set of politicians and the political party they represent.
“There is more to the meeting that meets the eye. Nigeria has enough meeting/conference rooms, many of which meet international standards. It is therefore clear that the Dubai meeting is for other sinister political purposes ahead of the 2019 elections,” he said.
Nabena said that anti-graft and security agencies must be awake to its responsibility of investigating the Dubai meeting.
“Cash and carry politicians must be prevented from moving illicit cash around to induce voters and sponsor election violence and rigging.
“Again, relevant agencies must check suspicious movement of cash both locally and internationally by politically exposed persons under the guise of a “Dubai meeting or any clandestine meeting,” he said.