…Says scarcity ploy by marketers to dupe Nigerians

By Michael Eboh

THE Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, has blamed the current fuel crisis on hoarding of the commodity by some depot owners and petroleum products marketers.

In a statement in Abuja, National Secretary of IPMAN, Mr. Danladi Pasali lamented that despite the availability of the product in the country, some depot owners take advantage of the high demand of the commodity during the festive period to create artificial scarcity in order to dupe Nigerians.

Pasali, who was speaking after a brief meeting with officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, called on the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR and other regulators in the petroleum downstream sector to exercise their responsibility by increasing their supervisory role on the marketers at all levels.

He reminded the NNPC of the hitches in the current distribution system which allows some depot owners to determine prices on products that belong to the NNPC, while he assured the NNPC of its readiness to assist in ensuring a smooth distribution once the product is made available to them and at affordable prices.

“We are calling all on our members that engage in sharp practices to desist from doing so in the interest of the masses and country at large,” he said.

The IPMAN officials acknowledged the efforts of NNPC Group Managing Director,  Dr Maikanti Baru and the Managing Director of the  Nigerian Petroleum Marketing Company, Mr. Umar Ajiya for taking lead in restoring sanity into the system, more especially reviving the depots in Ibadan and Ejigbo, at the same time acknowledged revival of Kaduna and Warri refineries to encourage smooth distribution of Petroleum products to other parts of the country.