By Odita Sunday
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has demanded an independent forensic audit of funds reportedly spent on the rehabilitation of Nigeria’s public refineries following another increase in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s petrol gantry price.
The refinery raised its gantry price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from N1,185 to N1,200 per litre on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, prompting HURIWA to call for greater transparency and accountability in the petroleum sector.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, the organisation described the latest increase as “intolerable, unacceptable and insensitive” to the economic hardship confronting millions of Nigerians.
HURIWA said the increase was particularly troubling given what it described as declines in international crude oil prices.
The group also criticised the Federal Government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) over the prolonged failure of the country’s publicly owned refineries to operate at full capacity despite substantial funds reportedly committed to their rehabilitation.
HURIWA demanded a comprehensive forensic audit of the funds reportedly spent on the turnaround maintenance of the refineries, including the reported expenditure of more than $2 billion.
It called on the Federal Government to disclose how the funds were utilised, identify those who authorised the contracts, name the companies that received the payments and publish details of the work carried out.
The organisation also demanded an explanation for the continued non-functionality of the public refineries and said anyone found to have engaged in fraud, corruption or diversion of public funds should be arrested, prosecuted and made to refund recoverable funds.
HURIWA rejected any proposal for another major round of public spending on the refineries without first accounting for previous expenditure and recovering funds found to have been misappropriated.
The group argued that the continued failure of the public refineries had increased Nigeria’s dependence on private refining capacity, raising concerns about competition and pricing in the downstream petroleum sector.
While acknowledging the importance of private investment in the industry, HURIWA said Nigerians should not be left at the mercy of a dominant market player because government-owned refineries had been allowed to remain largely non-functional after years of public expenditure.
It therefore urged the Federal Government and relevant regulatory authorities to ensure that petrol pricing remained transparent, competitive and subject to effective oversight.
HURIWA said repeated increases in petrol prices were worsening the cost-of-living crisis by pushing up transportation costs, food prices, production expenses and household expenditure.
It consequently demanded an immediate explanation for the latest petrol price increase, publication of contracts, payments and project reports relating to refinery rehabilitation, investigation and prosecution of anyone found to have mismanaged public funds, and recovery of funds established to have been stolen or misappropriated.
The organisation also called for stronger regulatory measures to promote competition and prevent market abuse in the downstream petroleum sector.
HURIWA said Nigerians should not continue to bear the consequences of institutional failures, alleged financial mismanagement and the inability to deliver functional public refineries after billions of dollars in reported expenditure.
The group gave the Federal Government until 1 p.m. on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, to respond to its demands and provide Nigerians with explanations on the latest petrol price increase and expenditure on the country’s public refineries.
“Nigeria’s petroleum resources belong to the Nigerian people,” HURIWA said, insisting that the management of the sector must be guided by transparency, accountability and the public interest.
Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko
National Coordinator
Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA)
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