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HARDSHIP: Abuja Residents Cry Out As Fuel Scarcity Resurface And Persist (video)


The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has given reason for the resurfacing fuel queues in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and parts of the country.

IPMAN blamed the inadequate supply of petrol from the depots in Lagos for the scarcity.

Mr Chinedu Okoronkwo, IPMAN President, who made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday was reacting to the resurfacing fuel queues in some parts of the country, especially in Abuja.

Okoronkwo explained that the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine had disrupted the smooth distribution of petrol and marketers and transporters are finding it difficult to bridge products to other parts of the country from the depots.

He said: “The huge amount spent in running the diesel trucks to transport fuel is very discouraging because we are running at a loss.

“The current N165 per litre pump price for PMS cannot fit in into the present realities without the pricing template being reviewed.”

He, therefore, appealed to the Buhari-led government to look into the situation by providing palliatives to all marketers to restore normalcy to distribution or review the freight rate.

“The palliative can be making diesel accessible for marketers at discounted rates so that we can easily transport products across the country,” he said.
Fuel queues persisted in the Federal Capital Territory on Monday as motorists waited for hours at filling stations to get the Premium Motor Spirit, PMS.

Several filling stations were closed while some of those selling the PMS stopped mid-day on the excuse that the product had been exhausted.

At Kubwa, an NNPC station sold for three hours, before telling desperate motorists that its PMS had been exhausted.

There was a long queue at the NNPC depot at the Central Business Area, with motorists complaining of spending several productive hours just to buy fuel.

“I have spent three hours here. I left the office at 11.10 am but I am still here at past 2.18pm. It is a waste of manpower,” a businessman, Kayode Ishola, told The Punch.

Several motorists who waited at Oando Filling Station, opposite NNPC depot at the Central Area, were not so lucky, as they were told at 3.40pm that fuel had been exhausted.

Some of the motorists were forced to buy at N300/litre from black marketers who stood in front of the filling station, waiting for disappointed motorists to patronize them.

A sad Mariam Okereke, who identified herself as a civil servant, said she had sought PMS in several filling stations but could not get.

It was, however, gathered that some filling stations such as A.A Rano and Shafa filling stations were selling PMS as at 5.10pm on Monday.

Generally on Monday, motorists moved from one filling station to another, hoping that their next move would yield positive results.

Similarly, motorists accused marketers of adjusting their pumps in order to take advantage of the ongoing scarcity.

A Christian Pastor, Samuel Igbinedion, who said he bought PMS at a filling station in Gudu on Sunday, said he spent nearly N15,000 to fill his tank, rather than the usual 12,500-N13,000.

“Before the fuel scarcity, I would use 12,500 or N13,000 to fill my fuel tank, but I spent almost N15,000 to achieve the same purpose on Sunday,” he said, wondering why people were making money off the situation


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