The Chief Executive Officer of Dalex Finance, Joe Jackson, has argued that cutting fuel taxes amid rising petroleum prices at the pumps could ultimately do more harm than good to the local economy.

According to him, escalating energy costs risk triggering broader inflationary pressures, particularly in food prices.

Speaking on PM Express on Joy News on Thursday April 9, 2026, he said, “Listen, the energy prices are but one of the major effects that we could have. The bigger challenge would be food price inflation, because the cost of food, even locally grown food, has embedded in it up to 40% of logistics costs.”

“So if, the if, if the cost of fuel and logistics go up, we’re going to be hit eventually. Where to hit us hardest will be food...Now, even if the food was imported, remember that the cost per container has gone up. Insurance and transportation costs have gone up. So any which way, we are between a rock and a hard place where food prices are concerned,” he added.

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Jackson further stressed that the government must prioritize fiscal discipline and maintain a firm grip on macroeconomic indicators to avoid a self-inflicted crisis.

He said losing sight of these numbers during a period of uncertainty could lead to long-term consequences that far outweigh the immediate impact of global price fluctuations.

“If we lose our discipline and don’t keep the macroeconomic numbers right, the pain we will have after reacting, overreacting to this shock could be worse than the shock itself,” he said.

Jackson further called for a shift in focus from controlling prices to protect vulnerable households.

He warned government against the use of blanket subsidies or administrative price controls, describing such measures as expensive, distorting, and regressive.

“Number one, protect households, not prices. The mistake would be to suppress prices worldwide through blanket subsidies or administrative controls. That will be expensive. It will be distorting. It will be regressive,” he emphasized.

Joe Jackson said maintaining the current discipline in government expenditure is non-negotiable for the country’s medium-term survival.

“Let’s keep our macroeconomic stability intact. Let’s keep the discipline that we’ve heard about government expenditure intact, otherwise the cost will be higher than the shock itself,” he said.

SO/SA

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