28th April, 2011
Lagosians are groaning over the sudden increase in the price of kerosene, making them to pay more for the product.
P.M.NEWS checks revealed that a litre of kerosene now sells for N150.
The official cost of a litre is N65. No reason has been given for the sudden increase.
Filling stations now either sell at the amount or claim that the product is not available, thereby forcing customers to buy at the increased amount.
Areas visited by P.M.NEWS include Ogba, Agege, Iyana-Ipaja and Egbeda where all filling stations are selling at the same price or above.
Other areas visited are Ikotun, Isolo, Oshodi and Ikeja where filling stations sell at the new price.
Checks in other areas such as Iyana Iba, Mile Two and Mushin showed that the situation is the same.
A petrol attendant at Rain Oil, Mr Ebenezer Adebayo, attributed the price hike to the scarcity of kerosene in the past one month.
A supervisor at Oando Filling Station, Alade James, told P.M.NEWS that the depot price of the product has increased.
He said the present price at the depot “is either N129 or N130 per litre and when you add the cost of transportation, it will be reasonable to sell at N150 to be able to maintain the staff.
Lawrence Uche told P.M.NEWS that the price of the product escalated at the depot because of the general election. He noted that there was reduction in the importation of the product, adding that it also affected diesel which is now being sold at N165 per litre.
Users expressed frustration on the sudden increase of the product and blamed it on the insensitivity of the government.
Mrs. Abiodun Adebayo said the price has been increasing consistently. She recalled that they were buying a litre at N80 and later N100.00 and now N150.
She appealed to government to do something to address.
“Kerosene is an essential commodity that every family uses and it has to be subsidized to make it affordable,†she stated.
Speaking in the same vein, Mrs. Loveth Ubah said if government does not do something now to bring down the price, some families may resort to cooking with firewood and considering that Lagos is an urban city, it will not be proper to go back to the era.
— Cyriacus Izuekwe
