Further to the recent move by Dangote Refinery to sell refined products to Nigerian marketers in Dollar rather than the Naira, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has declared that Naira remains Nigeria’s only lawful currency for domestic commercial transactions across the country.
While cautioning, Dangote Petroleum Refinery not to introduce dollar payment system to the economy under any guise, FCCPC warned that it will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action regarding credible evidence of anti-competitive conduct, consumer exploitation, or any other contravention of the FCCPA Act
FCCPC further made it clear that the Nigerian Naira is the legal tender, and it so it remains the lawful currency for domestic commercial transactions within the sovereign country.
There had been unconfirmed rumours that Dangote Refinery may have been “unhappy” with the government over the continued issuance of more import licences to some oil marketers despite its comparatively large capacity to refine oil for the domestic market.
It was also alleged that Dangote Refinery was dissatisfied with the volume of crude supplied to it by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) aside from the relatively little volume of the crude purchased in Naira from the state oil company.
But responding in an interview, Mr. Ondaje Ijagwu, Director of Corporate Affairs at FCCPC, said: “The Commission’s position is clear,” stressing that “The Nigerian Naira is the legal tender in Nigeria and remains the lawful currency for domestic commercial transactions.”
The FCCPC also expressed concerns that the recent decline in international crude oil prices in the past several weeks has not been reflected proportionately in the prices of petrol sold to energy consumers in the country.
Ijagwu added that “The FCCPC remains concerned that recent declines in international crude oil prices have not been reflected proportionately in retail petrol prices.
“As the Commission stated in its 28 June public statement, pump prices increased rapidly when crude oil prices rose, yet the subsequent decline in international crude oil prices has not translated into corresponding reductions for consumers.”
Giving further insights, FCCPC recalled that the Commission further explained that the Federal Government, amid recent developments in the global oil market, convened a stakeholders’ meeting involving regulators, refiners, marketers, and other participants in the petroleum industry, following its concerns about continued oil price hikes in the domestic market.
Ijagwu averred that “The Commission stands by this position, and expects that, within a reasonable period, the benefits of lower international crude oil prices will be reflected in corresponding reductions in pump prices where market conditions justify such adjustments.”
“The FCCPC will continue to monitor developments closely, and will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action where there is credible evidence of anti-competitive conduct, consumer exploitation or any other contravention of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act” 2018 by Dangote Refinery, other players in the downstream petroleum sector of the economy.
