Leadership (Abuja)
Stanly Nkwocha
7 November 2009
Abuja — The Federal Capital Territory, FCT Abuja seems to be the worst hit as gradual fuel scarcity takes its toll on residents. Since the Federal Government announced its decision to deregulate the downstream petroleum sector, life of residents and those around its environ have not been the same.
Long queues characterize filling stations who have the product to sell, just as black marketers in the FCT can be said to be having good times as the price of their products have skyrocketed. In fact even filling stations have joined in the seeming boom as the product now sell between N70 and N150 per litre.At TOTAL filling station opposite the Nigeria Police headquarters in Area 11, long queues dot the area and are causing traffic congestion in the vicinity. This is just as black marketers who ply their trade in the area now sell 20 litre of petrol for as much as N5000 to N6000, while others sell as high as N8,000. The situation at AP filling station opposite NICON Hilton at Maitama is no different as the queue stretches over 3km, obstructing traffic flow.Our reporters observed that filling stations in the satellite towns in the FCT and some of its suburbs may have deregulated the sector themselves as prohibitive best describe the price they are selling their products.
While some stations sell a litre at N90 as against the official selling price of N65, in Masaka, a suburb of the FCT, a litre goes for as high as N200. This sudden increase in petroleum price has already taken its toll on residents who for the past days have had to grapple with increased transport fares. In the FCT, car drops have increased by as much as 100 percent while intra city fares have shot up by about a N150 percent. For instance fares from Lugbe to Wuse and Area 1 which hitherto cost about N80, now go for as much as N150. Mararaba to Wuse which cost average of N70,N80, now have their fares shot to between N150 and N 200 , depending on the time of the day. This is just as Gwagwalada to Area 1, hitherto about N200 is now about N350.Speaking to leadership weekend, a manager with one of the filling stations who pleaded anonymity, blamed the situation on the shortage of the product, saying for almost a week his filling station had not had any supply, just as he said panic buying was not helping the situation.
A resident of the FCT, David Irimogboyen, also speaking on the crisis, lamented what he called undue hike in cost of transport, saying government needed to be blamed for what he termed unguarded policies. He wondered why it was that fuel scarcity always surfaced at the end of the year with government playing hide and seek with it.The Federal government which says its decision to deregulate the downstream sector of the industry is final, says that the Petroleum Industry Bill which is presently at the national assembly is aimed at repositioning the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, towards becoming an accountable and profitable business concern wth deregulation a major step towards achieving government's set aim and objectives.Since the government announced its intention to deregulate the downstream petroleum sector weeks ago, there has been hue and cry over the policy, with the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, threatening a total showdown were government to go ahead with its planned policy.
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