Motorists Express Displeasure Over Petrol Price Disparity in Epe, Ibeju-Lekki
The motorists, who spoke in separate interviews in Lagos, alleged that all independent marketers' filling stations in the areas were selling petrol above N145 per litre.
According to him, oil marketers open their stations to motorists in the evenings when officials of Department of Petroleum Department (DPR) would have closed for the day.
"Most of the filling stations at Ibeju-Lekki Ajah axis belonged to independent marketers and the stations here don't have the product since November 2017.
"Few ones that have the product are selling between N170 and N200 against government approved price of R145.
"Within this period, DPR officials have come around to seal some of the stations which had resulted into scarcity of the product,'' he said.
Mr Suleiman Adisa, a motorist at Epe, said non-availability of petrol had resulted in price disparity among filling stations in the area.
Adisa urged the NNPC to increase petrol supply in order to curb disparity in the price of the product.
"The product is not available in Epe, that is why motorists buy at N170, if it is available, there will be competition and naturally nobody will sell above the normal price,'' he said.
A petrol dealer in the area, who spoke on condition of anonymity, condemned the clampdown of DPR officials on marketers when it was obvious that the dealers were not getting products at government approved price.
"Most dealers wait in depots for two months without petrol because the allocations favour the major marketers.
"As independent marketers who have collected loan from banks and want to remain in business, we are compelled to negotiate with marketers who have received the product.
"They sell to us between N158 and N165 depending on negotiation and that is why we sell for N170 per litre here.
"If the product is available at the ex-depot price of N133:28 per litre, no marketer will sell above the official pump price of N145 per litre.
"NNPC should increase supply to other communities apart from Lagos metropolis because there is scarcity of product in the hinterland,'' he said.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, had repeatedly assured that there would be no petrol price increase from the present N145 per litre.
He said meetings with stakeholders were ongoing to find mechanisms to ensure that there were no more fuel queues
Written by NEWSTRAWL ONLINE UPDATE
Sodiq Oyeleke is a Media, Human Resources, Project Management and Public Relations Practitioner
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