AN increase in fuel prices at this time will cause more hardship on the population.
This is a massive blow to citizens, especially after a period of inactivity due to the Covid-19 lockdowns.
Citizens are already trying to cope with higher food prices and still recovering from the effects of the recent Covid-19 lockdowns.
The Minister of Finance Colm Imbert, no matter how he tries to sugarcoat the increase in fuels at this time, there is no way he can get support from an already stressed to the limit population.
Imbert announced that from April 19 2022 gasoline prices will increase by $ 1 per litre. On premium gasoline, it will be increased to $6.75 and on super gasoline it will be increased to $5.97 per litre whereas diesel goes up by 50 cents to $3.91 per litre.
The price of kerosene will also be increased to $3.50
Imbert used all sorts of excuses and deflection stories in trying to paint a picture to explain the government’s decision for the increase. He stated that the Ukrainian and Russian war coupled with the international sanctions on Russia together with the global increase in oil prices are some of the reasons for the increase.
He said that the government is only increasing gasoline by a dollar but that the public would have to share the burden of the international oil price increase because of global factors.
This price increase will break the backs of our citizens and no one at this time can take this, far less agrees with Mr Imbert’s assessment of the situation. The price increases come at the worst possible time for our country and it’s unfortunate coming at a time like this where the average citizen cannot make ends meet. Businesses are now trying to recover after the long period of lockdowns and now to be faced with this is only putting more hardship on business owners, their employees and the population at large.
There will be a ripple effect in all goods and services as everything we use will go up. The government doesn’t seem to be looking out for their citizens or their families, all they are doing is making decisions to put more strain on citizens. People needed time to adjust to all the problems they faced during the pandemic and some more time to recover from the staggering losses they incurred but the government ministers and this administration seem to be only concerned about their own financiers, friends and their own personal incomes than the average citizen.
People feel stressed and worried about their ability to feed themselves and their families. This increase in gasoline prices affects the sustainability of our nation as a whole. The increase in goods and services, the shortage of foreign exchange and the possible implementation of property taxes are dangerous, a toxic combination that will have our economy reeling for years. Loss of jobs, reduced incomes and problems with money circulating inside the economy itself are all problems we now face that seem insurmountable.
The bottom line is inflation will start to rise and nothing this government does makes sense at this time. All we see are more hardships and fallouts from this fuel price increase by a heartless Government.
Neil Gosine is an insurance executive, the North East Regional Coordinator of the United National Congress and a former chairman of the National Petroleum Marketing Company of Trinidad and Tobago. He also holds a Masters in Business Administration. The comments and opinions expressed by him in this column are not necessarily those of AZPNews.com, a division of Complete Image Limited.
Petrol Increases will Break Citizens’ Backs
AN increase in fuel prices at this time will cause more hardship on the population.
This is a massive blow to citizens, especially after a period of inactivity due to the Covid-19 lockdowns.
Citizens are already trying to cope with higher food prices and still recovering from the effects of the recent Covid-19 lockdowns.
The Minister of Finance Colm Imbert, no matter how he tries to sugarcoat the increase in fuels at this time, there is no way he can get support from an already stressed to the limit population.
Imbert announced that from April 19 2022 gasoline prices will increase by $ 1 per litre. On premium gasoline, it will be increased to $6.75 and on super gasoline it will be increased to $5.97 per litre whereas diesel goes up by 50 cents to $3.91 per litre.
The price of kerosene will also be increased to $3.50
Imbert used all sorts of excuses and deflection stories in trying to paint a picture to explain the government’s decision for the increase. He stated that the Ukrainian and Russian war coupled with the international sanctions on Russia together with the global increase in oil prices are some of the reasons for the increase.
He said that the government is only increasing gasoline by a dollar but that the public would have to share the burden of the international oil price increase because of global factors.
This price increase will break the backs of our citizens and no one at this time can take this, far less agrees with Mr Imbert’s assessment of the situation. The price increases come at the worst possible time for our country and it’s unfortunate coming at a time like this where the average citizen cannot make ends meet. Businesses are now trying to recover after the long period of lockdowns and now to be faced with this is only putting more hardship on business owners, their employees and the population at large.
There will be a ripple effect in all goods and services as everything we use will go up. The government doesn’t seem to be looking out for their citizens or their families, all they are doing is making decisions to put more strain on citizens. People needed time to adjust to all the problems they faced during the pandemic and some more time to recover from the staggering losses they incurred but the government ministers and this administration seem to be only concerned about their own financiers, friends and their own personal incomes than the average citizen.
People feel stressed and worried about their ability to feed themselves and their families. This increase in gasoline prices affects the sustainability of our nation as a whole. The increase in goods and services, the shortage of foreign exchange and the possible implementation of property taxes are dangerous, a toxic combination that will have our economy reeling for years. Loss of jobs, reduced incomes and problems with money circulating inside the economy itself are all problems we now face that seem insurmountable.
The bottom line is inflation will start to rise and nothing this government does makes sense at this time. All we see are more hardships and fallouts from this fuel price increase by a heartless Government.
Neil Gosine is an insurance executive, the North East Regional Coordinator of the United National Congress and a former chairman of the National Petroleum Marketing Company of Trinidad and Tobago. He also holds a Masters in Business Administration. The comments and opinions expressed by him in this column are not necessarily those of AZPNews.com, a division of Complete Image Limited.