Scarcity of premium motor spirit ( otherwise known as petrol) has continued to spread across the country, with the prices of the product rising as high as N250 per litre.
In Lagos, long queues have persisted in most of the petrol filling stations, with some making brisk busineses by jacking up the prices of the product. Our correspondents also learnt that some dodgy petrol station operators would refuse to dispense their products in the day time only to sell at night to those who are willing to by at their own prices. For the product that whose official price is N87 per liter, some sell it for as high as n120 per litre.
But the situation is even worse for inhabitants of Port Harcourt, where our correspondents reported of astronomical rise in prices with the product going for up to N250 per litre.
Surprisingly, Delta State, which used to be the last hope for motorists especially those going or returning from the eastern axis of the country has been seriously hit.
Most stations in Asaba, the capital of the state, were out of stock or just refusing to sell as they were shuttered. Most of the few which were open to motorists were selling at between N110-120.
In the eastern states of Enugu, Anambra, our correspondents report that inhibitants buy the products at N150 per litre on the average. It was learnt that the situation has persisted for more than two weeks now.
The scarcity has been attributed to the inability of the Federal Government to meet the Susie’s obligations to the marketers as agreed. The government had last week approved the pavement of N413b as subsidy to the marketers.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation on its own has continued to insist that it has enough stock of fuel to meet the needs of Nigerians, cautioning against panick buying.
The Rainbow
