Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa (PAACA) yesterday asked the Federal Government to suspend its proposed 15 per cent import duty on fuel and diesel until the domestic refining capacity meets at least 80 per cent of national demand.

Addressing reporters in Abuja, Executive Director Ezenwa Nwagwu described the proposed tariff as a “monopoly protection policy” that threatens Nigeria’s economy and deepens the hardship of citizens.

Nwagwu accused the government of using the guise of protecting local refining capacity to entrench the dominance of a single player in the downstream petroleum sector, rather than protect millions of Nigerians who would suffer the consequences of such a policy.

He said: “It is a policy that threatens Nigeria’s economic stability and worsens the suffering of ordinary citizens. “The government justifies this move by claiming it will protect local refining capacity and stabilize the downstream market.”