Despite the Federal Governments’ efforts to ameliorate the pains, hardship and suffering of motorists in getting access to affordable Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol at filling stations across the coutry, the situation has remained unabated as The Tide investigation revealed.
To make the matter more complicated, the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA) yesterday, expressed concern over the inability of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to send petrol to its members’ depots.
DAPPMA’s Executive Secretary, Mr Olufemi Adewole in a statement in Lagos, yesterday urged NNPC to help the Association so as to alleviate the suffering of Nigerians.
“Our members’ depots are presently empty. However, if the PPMC/NNPC can provide us with petrol, we are ready to do 24-hour loading to alleviate the sufferings of Nigerians and for the fuel queues to be totally eliminated.
“We, petroleum products marketers, do empathise with all Nigerians who are going through difficulties at this time by spending hours on fuel queues because of the current fuel scarcity due to no fault of theirs.
“DAPPMA members import about 65 per cent of the nation’s total fuel consumption, Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) imports about 15 per cent and PPMC/NNPC import the balance of 20 per cent.
“However this scenario changed drastically due to several challenges faced by marketers,’’ he said.
The DAPPMA official claimed that their members pay PPMC/NNPC in advance for petroleum products.
He said fully paid-up petrol orders which have neither been programmed nor loaded is in excess of 500,000MT (about 800,000,000 litres).
“As at today, there is enough petrol to meet the nation’s needs for 19 days at a daily estimated consumption of 35,000,000 litres.
“Sadly, some people have blamed marketers for hoarding products. Unfortunately, this is far from the truth.
“Hoarding is regarded as economic sabotage and we assure all Nigerians that our members are not involved in such illicit act.
“While all kinds of allegations have been made in the media, it is important to set the records straight, as Nigerians first, and as responsible business men and women who employ Nigerians.
“As it stands today, NNPC has been the sole importer of PMS into the country since October,’’ Adewole said.
He said the current import price of petrol is about N170 per litre, with NNPC, which absorbs the attendant subsidy on behalf of the Federal Government, as the importer of last resort..
Adewole said the exchange rate of the dollar to the Naira is N306 for petrol imports and the interest rate Nigerian banks charge is above 25 per cent.
“The international price of petrol went up during the period of Hurricane Katrina and it has not dropped below USD$600/MT since then
“Landing cost of PMS in Nigeria is above N145 per litre which means any of our members that imports will have to resort to subsidy claims, a policy already jettisoned by the government.
“It is on record that any time NNPC assumes the role of sole importer; there are issues of distribution, because it is marketers who own 80 per cent of the functional receptive facilities and retail outlets in Nigeria.
“While we cannot confirm or dispute NNPC’s claim of having sufficient product stock, we can confirm that the products are not in our tanks and as such cannot be distributed.
“If the products are offshore, then surely it cannot be considered to be available to Nigerians,’’ he said.
Adewole however assured that fuel marketers remain committed to the progress of the nation and its citizenry as therein lies their own profitability and fulfillment.
In Rivers State, long queues were still witnessed across filling stations in the state. A visit by our reporter to Bori in Khana Local Government Council on Christians Day revealed that motorists buying petrol at N300 per litre at the Barbizon filling station.
Speaking to The Tide, Mr Baride Leezor, a motorist said he has no option than to buy at that rate to fill his car tank and transport passengers to Port Harcourt from Bori.
Manager of the filling station, Mr ThankGod Kpeewa, said that the marketers are not to be blamed, rather the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should be held responsible for the scarcity being experienced across the country.
He said that petroleum products, are now available at the Port Harcourt Refinery Alesa-Eleme for loading, stressing that independent marketers are struggling to get product from private tank farms.
At Bluebet Filling Station on the Bori-Eleme Expressway, the story was the same as motorists were buying fuel at N300 per litre, even as The Tide saw that many filling stations were closed down.
When The Tide visited the Saba Filling Station was selling the petroleum product at N250, per litre, also Liopec filling station on Oyigbo Road sold at N250, per litre.
However, the NNPC Mega filling station was selling at N143 per litre.
A motorist, Mr Ibe Emmanuel who speak to our correspondent said he came to the station since 4.30am to queue till 10.30am when he eventually bought the product.
Ibe called on the authorities concerned to come out with a better policy of handling the situation as Nigerians were going through pains, and hardship during Yuletide.
A litre of fuel now sells for N250 in most filling stations owned by the independent petroleum product marketers in Enugu and environs.
The Tide source who visited the filling stations in the city on Sunday observed that the product was sold for N250 per litre.
It was however observed that the product was available in abundance in the filling stations though sold above the government regulated price of N145 per liter.
The Tide source said that the product was still sold for the official price of N145 a litre in Total, Oando and NNPC filling stations as well as the filling stations of other major marketers.
The Manager of one of the independent marketers’ filling stations in New Layout, Mr Chidi Ugwu, said the increase in price was due to the recent difficulty in getting the product from the Port Harcourt depot.
“When the supply at the Port Harcourt depot normalises, the price will gradually return to normal,’’ Ugwu assured.
In its reaction, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in Rivers State, described the hike in petroleum price and its immediate effect of increase in transportation fare, as the Christmas gift which the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government has given to Nigerians.
This was just as travellers in the state for the Yuletide had expressed frustration caused by the hike in fuel pump price and the 100 percent increase in the transportation.
Rivers State Publicity Secretary of PDP, Samuel Nwanosike, who spoke yesterday in Ikwerre Local Government Area of the state, on the heels of the hike, said the fuel crisis witnessed across the country was a calculated attempt by Federal Government to punish Nigerians during the festive period.
Nwanosike said: “The long queues we see today at our filling stations, and the hike in the price of fuel and increase in transportation, are indications that this present administration has failed Nigerians.
“After Nigerians voted for them, they have given us pain and hardship as gift when we are to celebrate. There is hunger and suffering in the land and the people are not happy. Nigerians are hungry and in pain”.
He, however, noted that the economy of the State needs serious attention and commended Governor Nyesom Wike, for being prudent in the management of resources.
According to him, Governor Wike has brought tremendous infrastructural development across the State, with people-oriented projects.
Meanwhile, Nigerians have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to deal decisively with those responsible for the current scarcity of petrol.
Some of the Nigerian, who took to their twitter handles, prayed the president to punish those who, by their actions or inactions, caused the ongoing scarcity.
Replying to a Christmas Day message from President Muhammadu Buhari on his twitter handle @MBuhari, some of them particularly called on the president to sack any of his appointees responsible for the ongoing hardship.
Buhari on Christmas Day wrote on his handle: “I wish all Nigerians Happy Christmas celebrations.
“As I noted yesterday, the fuel scarcity that has caused many of you to spend this period on fuel queues is deeply regretted. All relevant agencies of government are working round-the-clock to bring relief to you.
But his message was greeted with negative replies, some calling for his resignation as petroleum minister, urging him to reshuffle his cabinet and take on more productive ministers.
They urged Buhari to quickly do something to redeem his government and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in line with all its campaign promises.
A twitter user, Victor Lawal, with handle @Vlawal, said that the president should stop apologising for the long queue occasioned by petrol scarcity and sack non-performing appointees.
“Oga please stop giving excuse. Who have you fired? The #FuelScarcity is primarily a failure of your government and until heads roll, I have stopped taking you serious. No difference between you and previous governments.
For Charles Ameh, with twitter handle @engrameh, he believed that the only solution to the problem of scarcity of petrol was for there to be consequences for failures.
She wrote: “How can the country move forward when there is never consequence for failure and ineptitude? How many Ministers have really delivered in their role?
“Under your government, the consequence for failure is to keep the job and keep failing. This is shameful.
Another user who goes by the name Process Advocate on twitter also reiterated that there was need for non-performing employees and appointees of the president to be sacked.
She wrote: Baba, we voted for you to change the way things are done in NIG. You have indolent and incompetent array of staff, but can’t change them. Your appointees mess your government up but it’s ok by you. No price for incalculable damage they do. We can no longer defend these.
For another user Oluwatobi John, he prayed the president to make the agencies work by setting up effective rewards and punishment systems.
Sir, please make these agencies work. Let’s have true consequence or reward system in this country. Some persons are responsible for our pains at the moment, so let us see someone or some individuals punished for this troubles.

Philip Okparaji