An ad hoc committee to investigate the circumstances leading to the increment in the petrol pump price, is to be constituted by the House of Representatives.
The committee will also propose palliative measures to be taken by the Federal Government to cushion the effect of the petrol subsidy removal.
The National Assembly lower chamber passed the resolution during the plenary session on Wednesday, sequel to the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) member from Imo.
Oil marketers had on Tuesday increased the pump price of petrol at retail outlets from N537 to N617 per litre in Abuja and N568 per litre in Lagos.
The development followed just weeks after the complete deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector.
While moving the motion, Ikeagwuonu said that section 88 (1) and (2) of the Constitution empowered the National Assembly to investigate the activities of any authority executing or administering laws passed by the Parliament.
He said that section 32 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021 saddled the Petroleum Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority with the task of regulating and monitoring technical and commercial midstream and downstream petroleum operations in Nigeria.
The legislator said the pump price was increased by petrol marketers “without conferring with the relevant agencies of government”.
Said Ikeagwuonu: “Given the current socio-economic challenges being faced by Nigerians, a hike in the price of fuel will heap great suffering and hardship on Nigerians”.
Contributing to the debate, Zakaria Nyampa, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from Adamawa, proposed that the house should ask oil marketers to revert to the old price pending the outcome of the investigation.
However, his proposal was rejected by the lawmakers when it was put to a voice vote by Benjamin Kalu, the deputy speaker and presiding officer.
When Kalu subjected substantive motion to a vote, it was voted for.
