Fuel scarcity: Nigerians in pains

By Enyeribe Ejiogu (Lagos), Uchenna Inya (Abakaliki), David Onwuchekwa (Nnewi), Jude Chinedu (Enugu), George Onyejiuwa (Owerri), Tony John (Port Harcourt), Scholastica Hir (Makurdi), Okey Sampson (Umuahia), Ighomuaye Lucky (Benin), Noah Ebije (Kaduna) and Priscilla Ediare (Ado-Ekiti)

 

Like Abiku, the Yoruba name for what the Igbo call Ogbanje — the child that is born and serially dies, to be born again, Nigerians are again going through the throes of scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol.

Across the country, Nigerians have been wasting man-hours queuing to buy petrol at very high prices at the few filling stations that have stocks to sell. 

 

The scarcity of petrol has stuck to Nigeria like a leech. The country used to produce petrol in abundance and even exported the excess to other countries more than 40 years ago, when the nation’s four refineries in Port Harcourt ( Eleme and Onne), Kaduna and Warri operated at installed capacity.

The inability of Nigeria, a major crude oil producing and exporting country, to refine a minuscule portion of its crude oil for local consumption has been a veritable reproach and made Nigeria a laughing stock before the world. 

 

While the nations from which the country imports petrol at very huge cost in foreign exchange gladly accept Nigeria’s dollar-earnings in exchange for shipments of petrol and other refined petroleum products, they also privately wonder about what is wrong with the leadership of the country and the calibre of people who have held the reins of governance these past 40 years. 

The past leaders that succeeded the Olusegun Obasanjo military regime in 1979 simply failed to exhibit patriotism and appropriately maintain the four refineries from the mid-80s, to keep them functional and productive. 

At a time, there was the failed repair of the catalytic cracking unit of the Kaduna Refinery which caught fire about a few weeks after a Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) process. The same story of failed TAM efforts have continued to dog the other refineries.

The cumulative huge sum spent annually to import petrol practically sucks up the bulk of forex that could have been made available to the productive sector, to keep manufacturing operations humming and sustaining jobs. 

Instead, scarcity of forex and near crippling energy costs have driven several manufacturing companies out of the country, resulting in job losses. 

Clearly, the serial expenditures to “revive” the refineries have essentially provided a conduit for treasury looting.

Today, in the present episode of fuel scarcity, Nigerians are still experiencing the near cyclic high price of petrol with the attendant agony and suffering involved in queuing for hours on end at filling stations to buy petrol. 

As the current scarcity bites harder, people from the various states of the federation recount their ordeals in search of petrol and the impact of the scarcity.

LAGOS

In the old Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State, believed to be the largest local government in Nigeria, in terms of population, Omobola cuts the true picture of agony. 

It is about midday on Wednesday. Bola, a staff of an IT consultancy firm that does remote work for a compant based in Belgium, has been on a queue at a petroleum products retail outlet operated as a franchise of NNPCL Limited on the Ikotun-Idimu road. 

The filling station station is selling at N700 per litre. The queue has stretched backwards for close to 100 metres, effectively taking up one of the two lanes heading to Ikotun, a very busy road plied by hundreds of commuter vehicles and other private vehicles. 

As would be expected, traffic has built up as the hundreds of vehicles snail along, inching forward to get past the filling station. 

Ikotun is a medium density residential area which also has hundreds of small businesses, ranging from supermarkets to eateries, shops as well as bank branches and the bustling Irepodum Market beside the secretariat of the Igando-Ikotun Local Council Development Area, under Alimosho LGA.

All morning, a noticeable orderliness had been maintained in the filling as motorists slowly pulled up to be served. 

As at the time Sunday Sun reporter got to the petrol filling station and started a conversation with him, Bola’s Toyota Corolla was still 33 cars away from getting into the premises of the station. 

But he was hopeful, his anger over the scarcity having somewhat abated as the chat flowed over the issue of fuel scarcity and all the headaches bedeviling the nation because of the oil and gas industry.

He said: “When I look at our country and potential, I get very angry at the way our leaders keep disappointing us. Little countries without crude function smoothly, managing their affairs. We, the so-called giant of Africa, we consistently show that we are a paper weight nation. Are we cursed with bad leadership?

“It was the Obasanjo military regime that built the Kaduna Refinery, which was handled by the Japanese firm, Chiyoda. His regime also built the second Port Harcourt refinery and the Warri refinery. He also built the distribution pipelines from Lagos to Mosinmi and all the way to Kaduna, Maiduguri, Kano, Sokoto and other parts of the country. He also built electricity generating plants before he left office in 1979. What did the people he handed over do? They could not maintain the refineries, they did not build any new one. They could not maintain the network of distribution pipelines built for the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, which was based at Mosinmi. My father used to work there and we lived in the staff quarters. My father is in his 70s now. Each time he talks about the mess the people that came after Obasanjo have made of the Nigeria oil industry, you easily feel and see his pain. Even Obasanjo himself did not do well when he was civilian president for eight years. Otherwise, I would not be suffering and sweating in this heat, waiting to buy fuel. Two nights ago, when I was chatting with my friends who are in the UK, we talked so much about this perennial problem. It is disheartening, honestly.”

EBONYI

For the past 30 days, the price of PMS has continued to increase in Ebonyi State, the salt of the nation. The price of the product was N670 per litre before it jumped to N900 and N910 currently. 

When it was sold at the old price, all the filling stations in the state were selling the product, but now that the price has gone up and hovering between N920 and N940, many stations are not selling the product.

The scarcity of the product has worsened with very few stations selling the commodity in the state. At the black market, it is sold at N1,100 or N1,200 per litre, depending on the filling station.

Some marketers in the state, including Ibrahim Sule, told Sunday Sun that his filling station stopped selling petrol because of its scarcity.

“You know that fuel is now very scarce, it’s not easy for marketers like us to buy and that is why you have been seeing this filling stations not selling fuel. Some marketers that succeed in getting stock, sell at high price to cover their expenses,” he said.

Residents of the state have continued to lament the steady increase in the price of the product, and the situation has made them to suffer untold hardship.

Jacob Mbam, a car owner, told Sunday Sun that he has parked his car because of his inability to fuel it as a result of the situation.

“My brother, I have parked my car, the situation is becoming tougher, I can no longer fuel my car. How can I be buying fuel for N920 per litre and the price is still increasing. If you buy N920 today, tomorrow it will increase and the day after that it will increase the more..

“From all indications, they are targeting N1,000 per litre or N1,500 by December. If nothing is done about it, people may not be using their vehicles and businesses will fold up. The government needs to do something about this situation,” he stated. 

For Mrs Dorathy Okoro, the Federal Government must address the problem by ensuring availability of the product: 

“The price of fuel is increasing almost on hourly basis and it is not even available. The government removed subsidy and refused to do the needful before removing the subsidy and that is why every Nigerian is suffering. You can’t see fuel to buy and if you see any, you will not have money to buy it because of the high price,” she said.

NNEWI

A major dealer in petroleum products in Nnewi, Anambra State, Mr Onyekachukwu Okoli, popularly known as Organizer Oil and Gas, has attributed the high cost of petroleum products to continued importation of the products and inability of the Federal Government to resuscitate moribund refineries in Nigeria.

Okoli who is the patron of Independent Oil Marketers in the entire Southeast has been in the oil business for decades.

He said that it had not been easy for oil marketers to source their products, saying that the consumers should not think that marketers were responsible for the high cost of the products since the price they buy the products determines the price at which they would sell to them.

His words: “It is not easy for us to source the petroleum products. Our prayer is that the government should know what to do about it. It needs urgent attention. They should stop importation of fuel into this country. The high cost is determined by the market forces of demand and supply.

“We have three moribund refineries in Nigeria and government should resuscitate them. They should be functional. We are pleading.

“If the prices of petroleum products come down, it is even to the advantage and best interest of the marketers because we will make more sales and prices of other things will also come down.

 “Government should please intervene. Additionally, improving the efficiency of the distribution network and cracking down on corruption and smuggling within the sector are crucial steps that can be taken quickly.” 

An Nnewi resident, Mama Ajima, a civil servant, said that government should be answerable to the plight of Nigerians over the fuel crisis. 

She questioned the rationale behind the removal of oil subsidy in the first instance without cushioning the effects, which she described as lack of foresight in policy making.

“The daily spending of an average Nigerian has increased astronomically because the prices of foodstuff have skyrocketed due to the fuel crisis. High cost of transportation has caused lateness to offices as a result of lack of commuter buses and taxis to take people to their various places of work.

“Nigerian government has adopted several measures to reduce the impact of fuel scarcity, including policies to make the currency stable and streamline the supply chain for petroleum products.

“Despite that, public reaction remains negative to a great extent. Many citizens accuse government of insensitivity to the sufferings of the masses.

“There have been protests in various parts of the country, calling for policy reversals and better management of the country’s resources, to no avail. We have lost confidence in the government,” she said.

ENUGU

For the Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Enugu Depot Unit, Chinedu Anyaso, NNPCL’s failure to make PMS available is the cause of the current fuel scarcity witnessed in Enugu and the neighbouring states.

Anyaso explained that the IPMAN, Enugu Deport Unit covers Enugu, Anambra, and Ebonyi states, parts of Kogi, Abia, Imo, Cross River and Benue states.

He said: “The fuel situation within our zone is worrisome in the sense that we are not having enough supply. It is even out of the ingenuity of our people that we are still having the product available here. But then, not at the price expected by the public. And this is majorly due to non-availability of the product. We are not finding the product and when you find it you buy it at an exorbitant prices. 

“As of yesterday (Tuesday) our members were buying the product from Warri at the rate of N865 and N870 a litre. You pay loading expenses of about N2 or N3 per litre as the case may be. Then transportation cost about N25 a litre. So, when you add all these things, you find out that your landing cost is about N900 a litre. That is why you find a lot of our members selling at N920 or N950 a litre. 

“This is basically because the product is not available. NNPCL that we signed a bulk purchase agreement with has not been giving us this product. We are not getting direct from NNPCL. Rather we buy from tank farm owners who sell at their own price to us. So, we want NNPCL to reverse this trend of events so that we can buy from them directly. 

“Their price is about N560 a litre. If you buy at that price, some of us can sell at N600 or little higher per litre. If you go round, you can find out that most of their stations are selling at N600 a litre, but nobody else can do that. This is the situation we found ourselves in. 

“Let them pump more products into the system because if they wet the whole place with products, you cannot talk about additional cost in the product or maybe scarcity of product. It is only when there is not enough product in the system that you find this kind of situation. That is just the basic truth about it.”

Anyaso expressed concern that the NNPCL has not been able to explain why they have failed to sell products to marketers despite appeals by the National President of IPMAN, Alhaji Abubakar Gerima.

He urged the Federal Government to urgently repair the Enugu Depot which he said has been moribund for more than 20 years, adding that doing so will bring down the price of petrol products within the area. 

On how the current situation was affecting his members, Anyaso said: “We are equally pleading that they should do the needful to cut the suffering of the masses. Because even we, the petroleum marketers are not left out in the hardship in the country. It is a vicious circle. 

“When you sell your fuel, you need to buy garri and rice, you are not isolated from all these things. The perception among Nigeria’s out there is that we are profiteering from the precarious situation on ground, but that is far from it. Our members are suffering. 

“Most of us don’t even have that money to buy at this exorbitant price. A truck of PMS which contains 45,000 litres for a little above N8 million is now about N40 million. Where will you mop up the fund to buy? When you go to the bank they kill you with interest rate. So, these are the things we are facing.”

A bus driver, Ejike Udeh, who spoke to Sunday Sun expressed worry over the recent hike in petrol product price. 

He revealed that some weeks ago, he was buying the fuel at N730, but the price has suddenly jumped to N950.

“It is difficult because we can’t keep increasing our charges. Our passengers are complaining and we understand their plight. It is not easy for anyone. There is a price you will call and you see some people decide to trek or they wait for the bigger buses which will charge cheaper. 

“This is unfair. Government should please come to our rescue and bring this thing down. I don’t know how long we are going to continue like this. We have families that depend on us,” he lamented.

On his part, a civil servant, Chinonso Ogbonna, said that he had been waiting for over 3 hours to buy fuel at the NNPCL filling station, Abakaliki Road. 

He said that he was determined to spend the entire day at the station if that was what it would take for him to get the product.

His words: “I have been here for over 3 hours now. I’m not even planning to leave. You can see how long the queue is. What happened is that they were discharging their product. So, after they are done, the line will start moving. 

“The only reason we are here is because the price is cheaper compared to what others sell. Here is N600, but I bought the product for N930 yesterday. The difference is much. So, I plan to fill my tank. 

“I learnt that some people slept here in order to get fuel. I don’t blame anybody this period. One just has to do what is necessary to survive.”

IMO 

Imo, the Eastern Heartland, now appears to be an exception from the petrol scarcity buffering many several states. Most of the filling stations have products, but PMS now sells for N900 or 930 per litre which has caused a further spike in transport fares and consumer goods, compounding the woes of residents of the state. 

With the exception of the NNPCL stations which sell a litre of fuel at N760 in the state, independent petroleum marketers are selling the product between N900 and N930 per litre. 

It was also discovered that even the prices of domestic gas has gone up. One kilogramme of gas now sells for N1,350.

As a result of the spiralling price of fuel in the state, commercial bus drivers’ association of various routes within the metropolis have announced a new regime prices per drop. 

The new prices were conspicuously pasted inside the windscreens of their buses where the passengers can easily see and read for themselves.

For instance, commuters heading to Owerri metropolis from World Bank area will have to cough out N300 as against the previous N200 which was imposed on commuters in May of this year. 

Also, those going to MCC/Uratta/Toronto from Wetheral Road now pay N400 from the previous N250.

Similarly, buses plying Orji from Wetheral junction charge N300 as against the previous N250. 

However, commuters heading outside the Owerri metropolis to either Mbaise, Orlu, Ngor Okpala, Ohaji are charged between N1,400 and N1,800.

Ugoanyanwu Ben, a manager with E. Ekechi Petroleum Company along the Owerri/Aba road disclosed that they buy from major importers in Lagos and then transport it down to the state.

He said that since the removal of the subsidy the price of petrol has been unpredictable as importers sell according to the prices that allow them make profit.  

Similarly, the station manager of Virgin Forest Filling station, Chuks Ambrose, said that the cost of fuel is not of their making, and offered this explanation: “We get our products from Lagos and then transport it to Imo State. We also pay for hiring of the tankers and their drivers and when you add all the costs we make a marginal profit. We sell a litre of fuel for N890 and it is not a bunkered product, it is a good product. I think if the government can bridge the cost of transportation it will be cheaper.”

Lamenting the situation, Chisom Agu, a civil servant, said: “We are really suffering in this state because of the cost of transportation. I live in Orji area and from there to the secretariat is N1,200 on just transport every day I come to the office. And how much is my salary a month? 

“Most people are now trekking to offices as I speak to you because there is hardship in the state as a result of the removal of fuel subsidy.”

Mrs Charity Odinaka, also a civil servant said things are now “very tough” for salary earners as it is nothing to talk about. 

“We, as civil servants, are worse off in every thing. For instance, I am a Level-10 officer, but I still earn the salary of a Level-8 officer. So, how does one survive in this kind of hard situation?  

“It is only in Nigeria where those in government do not care about its citizens. If you’re sick you cannot afford the prices of ordinary malaria medicine. And if you talk they tell you it is the high cost of fuel and US dollar,” she said.

RIVERS

In Rivers State, there is no fuel scarcity. Rather, what residents witness is disparity in pump prices at different fuel stations. 

Sunday Sun investigations revealed that only the NNPCL mega station and its franchises sell at N690 per litre.  

The only fuel station you would see long queues of motorists is the NNPC mega station and its outlets. 

The long queues are mostly witnessed in Port Harcourt township in Port Harcourt City Local Government (PHALGA), where the NNPC mega station and its outlets are located.

But it is not always that these stations get supplies of PMS. Nevertheless, some  motorists said the difference (pump price) is much, compared to the amount sold by unpopular private-owned fuel stations. 

The motorists said that they do not mind the inconvenience of queuing for hours at NNPC, even if it takes two days. 

Meanwhile, the AP fuel station along Station (Odual) Road in the state capital, sells at N665 which is cheaper. 

Like the NNPC stations, the AP does not get fuel always. Even when it gets, the stock does not last for hours. 

But other privately-owned fuel stations sell at different pump prices per litre. The prices range from N850 to N950 per litre. 

When Sunday Sun visited one of the privately-owned fuel stations like Caro Oil Plaza, in Port Harcourt metropolis, petrol was being sold at N850 per litre. Also, at Conoil, by New Market Layout, Churchill, a litre was sold at N900. This was as at Wednesday, August 21, 2024. 

However, checks revealed that the marketers sold according to how they bought their stocks of fuel.

In a chat with an AP pump attendant on the secret behind the cheaper pump price, he simply said, “Our Oga (employer) said we should sell like that. And we have been selling as he directed. Maybe, it is how he buys his own.”

The hike on fuel pump price has drastically reduced vehicular movement in Port Harcourt and its environs. Places like Aggrey Road, Mile 3/Ikwerre Road, Rumuokoro, Garrison and Slaughter, which are prone to gridlock, are now free. Areas where heavy  traffic is experienced are places where there is ongoing road project.

Rivers residents groan daily over the hardship compounded by the high cost of fuel. Some commercial bus and taxi drivers have adjusted their operational periods in response to the situation.

Mr Ikechukwu Nnaemeka, who lives in Oyigbo and shuttles Oyigbo-Aba Road by  Lagos Bus Stop, said that he visits his family in Oyigbo every weekend in order to “meet up and have something for the family.”

Nnaemeka lamented that he has no option than to sleep in his bus from Monday to Friday to enable him save some money for his family.

BENUE

For residents and marketers, the fuel scarcity in Benue State is not only deepening the suffering of the masses, but affecting their businesses.

Some of the petrol marketers who spoke to our correspondent said that the fuel situation is going from bad to worse as they are losing customers due to the heightened fuel prices.

In the last few weeks, while some fuel stations closed for non-availability of products, the few major marketers who have fuel, including the NNPCL mega station, have long queues with some of the motorists, particularly transporters, sleeping over at the stations in a desperate move to buy fuel.

“The fuel situation is horrible. It’s very sad and nobody is doing any better. This is not what the government promised the people of Nigeria. They didn’t promise us hardship or long queues, but that is what we are getting,” a petrol station manager in Makurdi, Iorlumum Tyokyer, said.

Tyokyer, who noted that for a long time they had not got fuel supply from the NNPCL, said: “We get fuel from private depots in Lagos and Calabar and it’s not easy getting it. At times, they run short of product and we have to wait. So, when we don’t get supplies, we close down the station and wait until we get supplies.”

The manager who could not state the reasons for the scarcity and high price of fuel across the nation said: “Once you run short of a particular product, fuel for instance, the price will go up and every other thing also increases. Government must rise up and do the needful.”

Another marketer, Abije Simon, simply said: “The situation of fuel in Benue State is not funny and we are losing customers.”

Abije told Sunday Sun that despite the scarcity, people are no longer turning up to buy fuel at the station because of the higher rate in which a litre is being sold.

He said: “We are now selling a litre of fuel for N960 and because of that many commuters have parked their cars and are not buying and those who are buying cannot buy the quantity they want because of the new price.”

While lamenting the difficulty in getting the product from the depot, the manager said: “To get the fuel from the depot is also a big issue. Sometimes you can pay for the product today and less than one hour after, they will tell you the price has increased, in the next 2 hours, they will top up the price again and again. 

“So, the prices on most of our tickets are being upwardly reviewed and as such we delay in getting the products. When the trucks travel, it will take about two weeks before they will load to return.

“Our customers are complaining about the prices and sometimes they go ahead to insult the management and accuse them of increasing fuel prices.

“As of last week, we discovered that there was no fuel in Makurdi. The major marketers were all closed and a few that had fuel, like NNPCL, had long queues and in under one hour, they said the product had finished. So, we are all crying and we would appreciate the government if they can do something.”

He disclosed that they get their fuel supplies from agents in Lagos, Warri and Calabar depots.

“Sometimes when we go to Lagos and the price is high, our truck will head to Warri and if the price is the same, he would have no option than to buy it there.

“As I speak to you, we no longer go to Calabar again to load because of the higher rate and other expenses there.

“Even when we go to Lagos and Warri, we don’t get fuel from the government depot, we buy from the major marketers who are distributing fuel and you can imagine what the price would be. All this is affecting us and we are just operating at a loss.

“We are not comfortable with the fuel situation in the country. Government had promised the people that they will enjoy when the fuel subsidy is removed, but we are not benefitting. The poor masses are being made to cry and gnash their teeth because of the hardship. Transport cost and food cost have all risen and people are barely surviving.

“So I appeal to the Federal Government to take proactive steps to reduce the fuel price from this current N950 to at least N500 to reduce the cost of living for the benefit of all Nigerians,” he said.

ABIA

Back in July, in Abia State, there was minimal difficulty in getting petrol, the situation got worse after the protest against bad governance and hunger, in the first 10 days of August.

Prior to the protest, the pump price of fuel was between N850 to N870 per litre, depending on the locations of the filling stations.

It was thought the initial rise in pump price was as a result of the protest that perhaps broke the supply chain. 

There was the belief in some quarters that after the protest, pump price would come down to a lower level than the protest period. 

However, this was not to be as the pump price has gone all time high in the state, with the product now sold between N930 and N1,000 per litre.

The fuel scarcity is not much noticed in the state ostensibly due to the fact that many private car owners have parked their vehicles at home as a result of high cost of fuel and sourcing fuel from other states.

Marketers in the state attributed the availability of the product in the state to their aggressive sourcing of fuel from different parts of the country, though at exorbitant prices.

A marketer on Aba Road, Umuahia said that ordinarily, they were supposed to be getting product supplies from the Aba Depot, but since the depot is no longer functioning, they go as far as Lagos to source fuel with the attendant landing costs.

He said that it has been difficult sourcing fuel from outside the state and by extension the Southeast, which he said informed the rising cost of fuel in the state.

Another marketer on Umuwaya Road, Umuahia, said that for a long time now, they had not been getting supplies of petroleum products from the Aba Depot, forcing them to look elsewhere for the products.

Some marketers in Aba, the commercial hub of the state, who spoke with Sunday Sun on phone equally complained of passing through untold hardship in getting fuel supply since the Aba Depot is no longer working.

“Before now, we used to get petroleum products from the Aba Depot, but since the depot was out of use, it has been very difficult sourcing products from outside the Southeast.

“If you succeed in getting the product, the cost of bringing it down to the state is another problem and that is why it appears the pump price of fuel is higher in Abia than in Lagos and other areas that get fuel supplies directly,” he said.

The rising cost of fuel has brought untold hardship to the people of the state.

The astronomical rise in goods and services the people said is attributable to the high cost of fuel.

Private vehicle owners in the state have been forced by the high cost of fuel to park their vehicles at home and resort to using commercial vehicles for their journeys within and outside the state to save cost.

EDO

Like its counterparts in other parts of the country, members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Edo State chapter, have been badly hit by petrol scarcity.

Chairman of the Edo State chapter, Alhaji Abdul Baba Saliu, who spoke through his Vice Chairman, Comrade Godwin Iroghama, said that they have been getting their supplies from the private depot in Delta State at the cost price of N850 per litre.

He said the NNPCL had earlier blamed the scarcity on the just concluded #EndBadGovernance protest, but with the end of the protest, fuel scarcity has still continued.

Alhaji Saliu said until the government fully repairs the refineries in the country and made them operational, the problem would linger on.

Saliu also appealed to NNPCL to open up their portal for IPMAN to order for their products.

He said at times, when they order for product, it would take months for them to get their supplies.

The chairman further appealed to the NNPC Ltd to increase its supply of the product, noting that when demands are more than supply, there will always be problem.

 

KADUNA

In the Kaduna metropolis, the capital of Kaduna State, some residents are lamenting the high cost of fuel, which daily takes a toll on them, forcing many families to cut expenses to be able to cope with the situation.

The people want the Federal Government and its relevant agencies to act fast and put in more efforts to remove all bottlenecks along the distribution corridor of fuel. 

A Kaduna-based pastor, Rev. Emmanuel Olorunmagba said: “The high cost of fuel in Nigeria is the root cause of the outrageous inflation in the country. This is so because all businesses depend on fuel one way or another. Also, fuel is highly needed for mechanized farming and for transportation of farm products.

“Therefore, this is cause of the high cost of food and other essential commodities in the country. 

“This is one of the times in Nigeria when it is difficult to cope due to the high cost of living, resulting from the inflation triggered by high cost of fuel. Most car owners now park their cars, to use commercial transportation and this is making some salary earners to go late to work on some occasions as they no longer have control over when they move, since their movements now depends on when they get vehicles. Many have to wake up earlier than before to prepare and go to work because of the morning rush. 

“Though the removal of subsidy is good, but the implementation and timing were both wrong and, therefore, resulted in the suffering of the masses. It has never been witnessed like this. Clearly, the enormous suffering being experienced by the people now as a result of the outrageous high cost of fuel can be attributed to the removal of subsidy. 

“The Federal Government should have put measures on ground to cushion the initial effect of the removal of subsidy before implementing the policy. Also the Federal Government should have ensured that at least two of our refineries were working before removing the subsidy”.

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdulhakeem Adegoke Alawuje said: “No doubt, the impact of the fuel situation on the cost of living has been very tough on everyone. The scarcity of PMS enables the oil marketers to hike the prices arbitrarily. But what is not in doubt is that the crisis is artificial and self imposed, particularly from the NNPCL, the oil marketers, the tank farm operators and the trade unions who either hoard the products, divert them or fix prices arbitrarily.

“So, the authorities across levels have to act fast. They need to restrategise and put more effort to remove all bottlenecks along the distribution corridor. We must stop using dollars for our economy. Local and all private refineries across the country must quickly come on board. More modular refineries must be licensed and encouraged to grow to crash the cost of fuel and energy, and stand fully with them. 

“Meanwhile, members of the cabal or oil Mafia that have been the beneficiaries of the fuel subsidy and fuel importation for decades must be decisively dealt with, because they will do everything within their power to frustrate both the government and the private refineries with the sole aim to force the government to return the country to the era of subsidy scam.”

EKITI

In Ekiti State, most petrol stations don’t have fuel to sell and have, therefore, been locked up by their owners. Those that have the product sell between N1,000 and N1,100.

Most major marketers like NNPCL mega station and BOVAS in Ado-Ekiti, capital of the state, don’t have fuel, but Matrix, one of the major marketers located along Poly road in the metropolis as of today, Wednesday, had fuel and sold at N900 per litre. 

Being the only one selling fuel, it was besieged by motorists, motorcyclists, commercial tricyclists (Keke Marwa) and others who came to buy fuel to power generators and the black market sellers with their multiple jerrycans.

Chairman, Petroleum Dealers Association of Nigeria, Ekiti State chapter, Mr Olu Olobele, who had a chat with Sunday Sun on the development, said:  “There is no serious scarcity in Ekiti. Some of the filling stations are selling and there are no queues, but the prices at which they are selling varies, some are selling at N880, others at N900.”

On how they get their supplies, he said, “we get supplies directly from depots in Lagos State.”

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