By Joseph Lamin Kamara
Despite last week`s announcement reducing pump prices of fuel, there have been calls for more reduction.
Consumers and civil society activists say the new changes announced last week, about seven months since global oil prices began tumbling, were too little too late.
According to the new pricing regime, a litre of petrol was sliced from Le 4,500 to Le 3,700. The same applies to diesel and kerosene.
“We are concerned that it has taken quite some time to reduce prices of petroleum products, and even the reduction is not adequate for the people of this country,” said Valnora Edwin, Executive Director of the civil society group Campaign for Good Governance.
“The people of this country need much more reduction in fuel price, and we hope government and oil marketers will consider reducing the price further,” she added.
Ms Edwin said if government was committed to addressing the present economic problems of the country it would ensure fuel prices went down more, “which will help the common man in terms of business and transportation.”
Information Communication Specialist Adalla Sall, who works at PZ in the central business district of Freetown, shared what appears to be the popular view since the reduction was announced last week.
“Government is still cheating us because they have done only about 16% reduction,” he said. His argument was based on calculations circulated on social media, Whatsapp, questioning the intention of the government and those who control the oil market.
Sall said if the fall in oil prices in the global market were to correspond with that “in our market, we should be buying 1 litre around Le 2000.”
Sall said he has had to raise the charges for his services when fuel price was high and “it is the customers who suffered more.”
Foday Turay, a taxi driver in the West end of Freetown, said they would consider reducing fares to “Le 800” if government did the appropriate reduction.
Thursday`s announcement reducing fuel prices was done by the Managing Director of the National Petroleum (NP) Sierra Leone Company, flanked by fellow executives in the petroleum industry.
NP accounts for about 50 percent of petroleum imports into the country, so its position on the issue was crucial.
The company`s Marketing Manager, Kobi Walker, told Politico a few days prior to the announcement that “prices of petroleum products are determined and regulated by government, not us.”
However, Dan Mason, Executive Chairman of the government oil regulating body, the Petroleum Regulatory Agency, said the government reviews oil prices every two weeks and that “the prices do not go out if oil marketers do not confirm them.”
Mason, two weeks before the announcement, refused repeated requests for an interview by Politico on the issue, only managing to say that the issue of oil price was “a government policy” and its reduction was “being discussed in cabinet.”
On Thursday, following the announcement of the reduction, he was reported saying on SLBC that the government would ensure fuel was affordable to all Sierra Leoneans.
© Politico 27/01/15
