Business
PEFMB Urges Stiffer Sanctions Against Marketers
The Petroleum
Equalisation Fund Management Board (PEFMB) has called for stiffer sanctions against marketers, who engage in sharp practices in the loading and delivery of petroleum products across the country.
The Executive Secretary of the board, Mrs Adefunke Kasali, made the call in Abuja while speaking at a forum.
Kasali said the penalty for defaulting marketers as enshrined in the PEF Act was outdated and needed to be reviewed to make it more punitive.
“ The act establishing the fund has a penalty in there, but it is very old; it (the penalty) is just N50,000. When the act is reviewed by the PIB, that (defaulting attitude) will change.
“That’s not very punitive; it just puts it on us, and we have to do the proper work. If the penalty is not deterrent then we sort them out and sift these things out (files),’’ she said.
She, however, expressed optimism that the new Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) currently before the National Assembly would address the anomaly when passed.
She also said some of the marketers had made the process of verifying their claims more cumbersome.
According to Kasali, the board processes more than 100,000 claims belonging to major marketers, independent marketers and the Depot and Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMA) annually.
“We have thousands of marketers, all independent marketers. We deal with major marketers; we deal with DAPPMA marketers.
“And so we have many marketers and we process well over 100,000 claims every year,’’ she said.
She said that the fund was working hard to ensure that marketers claims were processed immediately they were submitted for processing.
The PEF boss said that the board was working on its information technology system and had installed a special software that would help fast-track the payment process.
She said PEF had put in place a meticulous process that would ensure that only genuine marketers were paid claims for products delivered.
“We have to ensure that we are not just paying our money, government money, without ensuring that those documents are valid,
“We have to ensure their veracity, we have to ensure they loaded the products, we have to ensure that they delivered the product
“And so in the process of doing all these confirmation, with the staff we have, it’s very tedious,’’ she said.
Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.
Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.
The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.
Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.
“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.
“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”
Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.
In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.
Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.
Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.