Abuja — Any petroleum products marketer found to be hoarding fuel would face the full weight of the law, the Presidency has warned.Presidential spokesman, Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi gave the warning yesterday while fielding questions from State House correspondents. Insisting that there is enough fuel supply in the country to last at least one month, he lamented that "some unscrupulous elements are hoarding the commodity in order to sell it at scandalous prices to motorists."

Adeniyi said the current hoarding of fuel by marketers justifies government's proposed deregulation of the downstream oil sector.

"What has been happening is a shame and it all goes to highlight why the market has to be taken away from the grip of some opportunists who feed fat on our collective misery as a nation. As I am talking to you right now, I am aware that the NNPC has distributed within the country a stock of PMS enough to last 45 days even if everyone decides to fuel their cars everyday but these people are hoarding the commodity and in the process selling for scandalous prices", he stated.

He said the planned deregulation of the downstream oil sector was in the interest of all Nigerians. He however gave assurance that government would not change pertol pump price arbitrarily without concluding the on-going consultations with all the critical stakeholders on the issue of deregulation.

"Deregulation is in the interest of everybody and the opening up of the telecoms sector has shown very clearly that ultimately the price of fuel does not have to be high. You all remember that when GSM was first introduced people were paying from between N14,000 to as much as about N30,000 for a sim card, yet today, the same sim card is now between N200 and N1,000. That is what you enjoy in a deregulated market", he stated.

"President Umaru Musa Yar'adua believes deregulation is central to the reform of the oil and gas sector and that we must begin to think and act not only with an eye on the short term, but also for the medium and long term. And for that reason, he insists on continuous dialogue with labour and other critical stakeholders until we reach a meaningful consensus and hopefully that will come very soon", he added.