Fuel scarcity persists as many petrol stations remain shut in Lagos

 

Fuel Scarcity

The NNPC has called for patience, saying normalcy would return soon.

The fuel scarcity that hit Lagos, Abuja and other cities across the country last week is yet to be resolved as Nigerians continue to queue for hours at petrol stations to buy fuel.

The development came following the importation and supply of a wrong specification of petrol in some parts of the country.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) had directed that the adulterated fuel be withdrawn from circulation.

The recall process prompted many fuel stations to shut their gates because they had no fuel to sell.

But in a statement issued to address the adulterated fuel saga and the petrol scarcity that followed it, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) had promised to monitor the situation and “ensure quality petroleum products are adequately supplied and distributed nationwide.

The NMDPRA also said “The NNPC Limited and all oil marketing companies have been directed to sustain sufficient distribution of petrol in all retail outlets nationwide” to bridge any unforeseen supply gap.

However, it’s been one week since the lingering fuel scarcity started and the situation has not got any better.

In Lagos, a significant percentage of petrol stations in the commercial hub of the country currently has no fuel to dispense, while the few who have fuel to sell hike the price.

Those who do not hike their prices are charging extra amounts for using their Point of Sale (POS) machines.

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avid Sunday, a Lagos resident who spoke to this writer said he bought a litre of petrol at N300 on Saturday at a petrol station in Ikorodu.

On Sunday, motorists were seen in many parts of the state queuing at petrol stations for several hours to buy petrol.

The long queue along Egbeda-Isheri road caused severe traffic in the area as motorists besieged the entrance of the only two fuel stations that opened for business on Sunday in the area.

Explaining the reason fuel scarcity persists across the country, a staff member of a petrol station, who pleaded anonymity told this writer that petroleum marketers are yet to get enough petrol to sell due to PMS supply shortage.

He said, “Marketers are yet to get enough fuel to sell. Ordinarily if we are to buy like ten trucks, we manage to get two or three, and you know you can’t keep paying for products. Even the ones you paid for have not received. What is happening at the depot I can not tell you, but what I know is that after paying for products, you’ll get a sale order and you’ll go and pick your product.

But now, even after making several payments, you can only pick one or two. Since it’s also on the first come first served basis, it’ll get to a point they’ll say everybody go home and come back tomorrow. That’s the case right now.”

The NNPC has, however, called for patience, saying normalcy would return soon.

The spokesperson of the corporation, Garba-Deen Muhammad in an interview with Punch said the queues would abate soon.

Muhammad said, “Every possible measure that is to be taken is being taken. Our top management and other staff are (working) round the clock to ensure the return to normalcy. Be patient. The queues will abate very soon.”

He also said a technical committee had been set up to look into the recall of the contaminated products and how it would be managed.