For ensuring adequate supply of petroleum products this festive season, Buhari and the leadership of the NNPC, led by Baru, have received kudos from Nigerians across all walks of life.
Before now, the scarcity of petroleum products had marred Christmas and New Year celebrations of Nigerians since the current administration came into office in 2015, although many of the root causes of the scarcity were said to have been inherited from previous administrations.
Daily Trust Saturday reports that failure to pay outstanding money owed oil marketers, shortfall in supply, pipeline vandalism, poor state of the refineries, frequent threats of industrial action by workers’ unions in the oil sector and a combination of other well-known factors had floored government’s effort to ensure adequate fuel supply; especially during festive periods in the last three years.
It is not as if all these problems have been completely dealt with, but this year, Nigerians have been able to enjoy the yuletide without having to queue for days at filling stations.
Asked what the NNPC did differently to ensure there was no repeat of the December, 2017, experience, NNPC’s Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru, told journalists on Christmas Eve that the corporation stockpiled petrol and ensured that no marketer could hoard or divert products as was done in 2017.
“There was a lot of work. This time last year, we were in a very bad situation in terms of supply, and we also experienced a lot of sharp practices, but with the support and approval of Mr. President, we were able to bring in a lot more products than was required to make sure that despite their hoarding activities and diversion, there was much more products available on ground to the point that we built up stock and in late January and early February we were bringing double of the daily requirement into the country,” Dr. Baru, said.
“At the moment, we have a 60-day supply in-tank; about three billion litres of PMS that will last us without bringing any drop of fuel in 60 days. We are seeing clear into the elections period,” the GMD added.
A cross section of motorists at Shema Petroleum Limited, one of the independent service stations along Kubwa Road, said the fuel supply situation delighted them, adding that many of them were pleased to see the nation escape the annual ritual of products scarcity at the year end.
One of the motorists, Mr. Abiodun Oluwole, said, “We are very happy at the fuel supply situation. We never thought it would come to this again. We thank the NNPC. By this time last year, we were sleeping at filling stations. But thank God they saved the situation this year.”
Another customer at A.Y.M. Shaffa, located along the Nyanya-Mararaba Road, Mr. Bitrus Gang, said he was happy because the scarcity experienced in the past came with increase in the cost of petrol, but that the case was different this year.
Mr. Gang said, “This time, you can see that the marketers have not increased the price because fuel is available in every filling station. For instance, some stations even sell at N143 per litre this Christmas period. It is unimaginable that they have not increased the price beyond 145 per litre this period.”
Some transporters said they had never had it this easy during festive periods; especially in terms of sourcing for petrol.
A driver who identified himself as Emeka and works for a popular transport company in Jabi, Abuja, said he used to queue overnight to source for fuel before embarking on almost eight-hour journey to Owerri in the morning.
Emeka said, “You know this is our season, and getting fuel at a reasonable amount is important for us if we are to make profit. So, now we don’t need to queue overnight again because it is available in whichever state we are plying. The most important thing about this availability of fuel is that it minimises the risk of accidents because drivers don’t need to starve themselves of sleep or rest in search of fuel anymore.”
A cross section of travelers said despite the fact that transport fares were hiked without corresponding increase in petrol price, this year’s increment was minimal compared to 2017.
A traveller, Chizoba Akachi, said, “Before, commuters used to be stranded at bus stops and parks across the FCT because only few vehicles would be seen on the roads. But now, you can see that it’s easy to make a choice of which transport company you want to travel with even though all of them have increased their fares.”
Another traveller, Godiya Samson Madaki, also told Daily Trust Saturday that he could not recall the last time he celebrated Christmas as great as in 2018.
Madaki said, “I feel much more comfortable with the current price of fuel since there has not been scarcity all through the holiday period. The transportation fares this year, compared to previous years, are very much okay and fair, although some drivers used the opportunity of the festive period to increase the transport fairs.”
Magaret Olowolayemo, another traveller, also expressed how relieved she felt celebrating Christmas this year and that despite the little money that was available, she was still able to travel home.
She said, “At least many Nigerians could travel with the little they have without having sleepless nights about the raise in transportation fare. Due to the availability of fuel, I was able to go to places. The motorists had no reason for unnecessary increment because there was fuel.”
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