The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry says the hike in electricity tariff will cause massive job loss and worse inflation in Nigeria.
The president of LCCI, Gabriel Idahosa disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday while reacting to the new electricity hike.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission had approved an N225 per Kilowatt electricity tariff hike for customers in Band A within Urban areas.
The increment represents a 250 per tariff hike from N68 per Kilowatt.
However, Idahosa said one of the immediate ripple effects would be that companies would start laying off workers, cut operational costs and increase the cost of goods and services.
“We hope that members will return to the drawing board, look at their projected cost of operations, and at the level of losses or the profit reduction they can accommodate.
“And what then happens is that they would have to make some decisions about scaling down operations to cut their losses, which may involve firing people.
“Companies may decide to fire people who are not critical to operations. They may start with the non-essential staff.
“Many companies now go on to part-time, offsite, and temporary employment and outsource jobs instead of hiring full-time workers.
“So you will see the loss of full-time jobs, part-time jobs, and even the halt in employment”, he said.
The latest electricity tariff hike comes as citizens continue to grapple with an epileptic power supply since January 2024.
In June last year, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government removed fuel subsidies, leading to a hike in the pump price of the product and its attendance hardship.
Credit Gist New Today News in Newspaper Nigeria Headlines