Member of Parliament for Akuapem North, Sammi Awuku, has criticised the government over the latest increase in fuel prices, questioning why Ghanaians continue to shoulder rising costs despite earlier assurances that the Price Stabilisation and Recovery Levy would cushion consumers against fuel price shocks.

In a Facebook post on Sunday, August 2, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) legislator said the latest adjustment in fuel prices would once again place an additional financial burden on households and businesses.

"Fuel prices have once again shot up and Ghanaians, as usual, are going to bear the burden," he wrote.

His comments come after the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) announced new price floors for the first pricing window of August, setting petrol at GH¢14.53 per litre and diesel at GH¢16.97 per litre. The revised benchmarks represent increases of 9.4% and 18.3% respectively over the previous pricing window, although several Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) had already adjusted their pump prices, with some retailing diesel for more than GH¢18 per litre.

Mr Awuku argued that while government may attribute the latest increases to developments on the international oil market, previous pricing trends had raised questions about the effectiveness of the current pricing mechanism.

"We will once again be told this is due to global crude oil prices. However, when Brent crude fell from US$78 to US$71.90 in the previous pricing window, pump prices still increased because the NPA's price floor prevented prices from falling."

He noted that the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) had also questioned whether the price floor mechanism was genuinely protecting consumers.

The Akuapem North MP further challenged the government over what he described as unfulfilled commitments contained in the National Democratic Congress' 2024 'Resetting Ghana' manifesto.

According to him, the manifesto promised to use the Price Stabilisation and Recovery Levy to cushion consumers during periods of rising fuel prices, stabilise the cedi and reduce the cost of living.

Mr Awuku observed, however, that although the levy was increased by GH¢1 per litre in July 2025, consumers were yet to experience the relief that had been promised.

"The more important question is this: What happened to the 2024 promises?"

He questioned why the levy remained in place if, as government has repeatedly maintained, significant progress had been made in reducing the country's energy sector debt.

"If government says it has made significant progress in clearing energy sector debt, then Ghanaians deserve to know: When will this levy be reduced and when will consumers begin to feel the relief that was promised?"

While acknowledging that no government can directly control international crude oil prices, Mr Awuku maintained that Ghanaians deserved transparency regarding policy commitments.

"No one expects government to control global crude oil prices. But Ghanaians do expect it to honour its commitments or explain, openly and honestly, why those commitments can no longer be fulfilled."

The latest fuel price adjustments are expected to have a ripple effect on transport costs and the prices of goods and services, as businesses adjust to higher operating costs. The NPA's price floor mechanism establishes the minimum prices below which OMCs are not permitted to sell petroleum products during each pricing window.