Fuel Price Reduction: Residents Hail Jonathan

Residents of Enugu, the capital city of Enugu State and environs have commended President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, for what they described as humanitarian and progressive decision of reverting the pump price of fuel to N97.00 per litre.

Our correspondent who went round Enugu metropolis and environs about 10 o’clock   Monday morning reports that over 90 per cent of the people living in the area received the president’s early morning nationwide broadcast with a lot of excitement and joy.

According to the people interviewed, the decision of the president shows that he has not only the interest of the people at heart, but at the same time becoming more sensitive to their day-to-day plight, urging him not to relent.

The people, most of them civil servants and businessmen who spoke to The Tide on condition of anonymity, used the forum to commend the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), for the mature manner in which they handled the nationwide strike over the removal of petrol subsidy by government.

In the same vein, they also commended the civil society group and other organisations  that participated in the strike, pointing out that Nigerians had by the strike demonstrated practically that power belongs to the people, and as such, should be carried along whenever any policy decision affecting them should be taken by government at all levels in the country.

The people who could not hide their excitement during the period of interview, however called on both government and labour not to stop only at reverting the pump price of petrol at N97.00 per litre, but should go further to fish out all those who had cheated in the past by embezzling public funds, especially in the petroleum sector, with a view to punishing them accordingly to serve as deterrent to others.

Continuing, the people went further to call on president Jonathan to leave no stone unturned in addressing the issue of corruption in the country, describing it as one of the greatest problems facing Nigeria today as a nation.

Corruption, they reasoned, if properly and courageously tackled by president  Jonathan, would go a long way in moving the country forward  in the over all interest of Nigerians, even generations yet unborn.

Meanwhile, a good number of petrol filling stations within the Enugu metropolis and environs visited by this reporter Monday were under lock and key, but a few of them selling fuel to their customers are yet to revert to the new pump price of N97.00 per litre  as at the time of filing this report.