The Operations Manager of the National Petroleum, Sylvanus Nicol yesterday Monday, July 3rd 2006 announced that with immediate effect, the prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene stand at Le 13,500.

Speaking to newsmen, Mr. Nicol said the increase had to be effected owing to the current global trend in the prices at the petroleum market and the increase in the acquisition cost of foreign exchange. On why the poor man’s friend, kerosene, received such significant rise in price, the Operations Manager said it was a way of minimizing adulteration of other petroleum products, as some people use kerosene, which has always been cheaper, to contaminate especially petrol.

The increases come days after long vehicular queues colonized Freetown yet again at fuel stations following an artificial scarcity of the products, and a little over one week after President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah boasted in his speech at the state opening of Parliament that queues for petrol and other essential commodities had disappeared under his regime. The increases also come less than two months after one increase by the Government as road tax.

Reactions have been telling. One civil servant told this press that even though increases and shortages had become the order of the day, there had been no corresponding increase in the wages of the common man. "This is scandalous!" he bellowed.

Another one said the blackout would take a nose-dive trend because the vast majority of people who use private generators would now barely afford to buy fuel at the current prices. "A much darker city awaits us" he added.

Meanwhile, as we went to press, Government had made no statement on how the effect of the increases will be cushioned. Drivers do not have anything to lose, one passenger observed. "All they will do is increase transportation costs which will further impoverish a people, who are currently facing a serious water crisis in the City," he added.

At the time of going to press, some drivers were asking for as much as Le 1,000 per town service.