The Independents Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), yesterday, disclosed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC has been denying them access to pay directly to the remittal portal of the corporation, which is contributing to the current fuel scarcity being witnessed in the country.
Speaking with journalists at the IPMAN Headquarters in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital shortly after meeting with the stakeholders on the possibility of resolving the scarcity, the IPMAN chairman for Ibadan depot that covers Oyo and Osun States, Alhaji Bukola Mutiu, maintained that Nigerians should not blame members of the independent marketers for the current fuel scarcity in the country.
He said: “Today we are having a joint meeting with the NLC state exco, IPMAN exco, and NUPENG exco in Ibadan depot on the current situation of fuel in the country, especially in Oyo and Osun States.”
“We want the masses to understand that fuel crisis did not emanate from our own end here or from any member of independent marketers, we are having a shortage of supply from NNPC, I mean we have been denied of having direct payment to NNPC remittal portal that they usually requested us to pay through.”
“For over six months now non of the existing marketing companies that are duly licensed with NNPC are being given authority to pay, so that implies that we did not have fuel at NNPC Ibadan here since the beginning of this year, we have not loaded a litre out of this Apata depot here in Ibadan, and we are having five deports in the Southwest and non of them are working at present.”
“We have to be going to the private depots to buy fuel from them and we have been buying at exorbitant prices ranging from N220, N212 per liter without truck expenses and to the level of buying at the rate of N220; N222 per liter as at the close of work yesterday and if you add N30 transportation to Ibadan for example from Lagos to Ibadan and total cost of transport on a liter from Lagos to Ibadan is N30 that means that we are getting the fuel to our various stations beyond N260, N255 per liter before we now have other expenses to run stations and other expenses.”
“As at today it is NNPC alone that is importing any liter of petroleum products to this country and the product that is meant to be given to us as independent marketers that are duly registered under them are being given to those private hands so we are buying from the third party.”
“Another point is that most of the Southwest states are being denied of getting access to fuel, if you check our waybills you see that we are buying from marketers from other regions like the northern and eastern part of the country, so we are using this medium to appeal to the authority and the NNPC top officials to look into our problem here, we are having products in but we are buying it from the third party.”
“If we go to where NNPC drop the products we will still be buying from the third party so that is the reason we are having outrageous prices at the filling stations currently. So, at this point, I want to appeal to the masses that the problem is not from our own end.”
“They should also go the private depots we are buying from to check and see what we are buying from those deports, private deports will also have their own challenges as well to tell them, but at the level of retailing, that is the problem we are facing,” Bukola said.
While speaking on possibility of the fuel scarcity coming to an end soon, the IPMAN chairman said: “I cannot say there is end in sight because I’m not an insider at NNPC and I’m not an NNPC official, it is whatever they give us that we will buy, so it’s only NNPC officials that can give us any clue on when the scarcity is going to come to an end.”
Also in his contribution, the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC Chairman in the state, Mr. Olukayode Martins said: “We read on the paper that the channel which this fuel passes across to the country is so much cumbersome, they’ve made it so difficult for the marketers to avail this fuel, the NNPC should do whatever they need to do because of the masses, maybe they need to eradicate the channel so we can have it at our various disposals.”
“I also want to enjoy the masses especially in Oyo state both the students and the masses please calm down because the atmosphere is tense already, they should be peaceful at this hour of the day and I believe with God on our side we will get to the root of this matter,” he said.
