The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, on Wednesday, in Lagos, said Nigerians should expect a drop in inflation given the reduction of diesel pump prices by two-thirds.
“In our refinery, we started selling diesel at about ₦1,200
for ₦1,650 and I’m sure as we go along…this can help to bring inflation down
immediately,” Dangote told journalists after he paid Eid-el-Fitr homage to
President Bola Tinubu at his residence.
The businessman said his petroleum refinery had been selling
diesel at ₦1,200 per litre, compared to the previous price of ₦1,650 – ₦1,700.
He expressed hopes that Nigeria’s economy will improve, as
the naira has made some gains in the foreign exchange market, dropping from
₦1,900/$ to the current level of ₦1,250 – ₦1,300.
Dangote said this rise in value has sparked a gradual drop
in the price of locally-produced goods such as flour, as businesses are paying
less for diesel. Therefore, the reduced fuel costs would drive down inflation
in the coming months, he asserted.
“I believe that we are on the right track. I believe
Nigerians have been patient and I also believe that a lot of goodies will now
come through. There’s quite a lot of improvement because if you look at it, one
of the major issues that we’ve had was the naira devaluation that has gone very
aggressively up to about ₦1,900.
“But right now, we’re back to almost ₦1,250, ₦1,300, which
is a good reprieve. Quite a lot of commodities went up. When you go to the
market, for example, something that we produce locally like flour, people will
charge you more. Why? Because they’re paying very high diesel prices.
“Now, in our refinery, we started selling diesel at about
₦1,200 instead of ₦1,650 and I’m sure as we go along, things will continue to
improve quite a lot,” Dangote stated.
He argued that the reduced diesel price has had “a lot of
impact.”
Dangote explained, “If you look at it now, when you are
buying ₦1,650 or ₦1,700 for a litre of diesel, and that one has been cut off by
almost two-thirds, you are now paying ₦1,200 for diesel.
“Maybe, going forward, even though the crude prices are
going up, I believe people will not get it much higher than what it is today,
₦1,200. It might be even a little bit lower, but that can help quite a lot
because if you are transporting locally-produced goods and you were paying
₦1,650, now you are paying two-thirds of that amount, ₦1,200. It’s a lot of
difference. People don’t know.
“This can help to bring inflation down immediately. And I’m
sure when the inflation figures are out for the next month, you’ll see that
there’s quite a lot of improvement in the inflation rate. So step at a time.
And I’m sure the government is working around the clock to make sure that
things get much better.”
He said reduced inflation is in the best interest of the
government and Nigerians.
Therefore, he urged captains of industry to partner with the
government to improve the lives of the citizens.
“You can’t clap with one hand,” he said, adding, “So, both
the entrepreneurs and the government, they need to clap together and make sure
that it is in the best interest of everybody.”
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