24th December, 2014
The Department of Petroleum Resources, Abuja, said 335 trucks of petroleum products were released from the depot between Monday and Tuesday to ease fuel scarcity in Abuja.
The Zonal Controller, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) Abuja, Mallam Usman Mohammed, said this on Tuesday in an interview with NAN in Abuja.
NAN reports that long queues for fuel resurfaced in Abuja on Monday, one week after the city experienced petrol scarcity, as hundreds of motorists besieged the few filling stations that sold the product.
Many petrol stations, especially in the city centre, were shut to customers without any explanation as to why they were not selling.
Hundreds of motorists thronged the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s mega stations on Olusegun Obasanjo way Central Area and Zuba-Abuja expressway to get fuel.
Mohammed attributed the return of long queues in the city to non lifting of fuel by the petroleum tanker drivers due to a minor problem over the weekend between Con Oil, Mobil, Total and depot managers.
According to him, the problem is also compounded by panic buying and the rush by those that are traveling for the holiday.
He, however, said that the problem between the oil major marketers and depot managers had since been resolved and the petroleum tanker drivers had started to lift fuel from the depot to Abuja.
“As at Monday, we have about 205 trucks of petroleum products supplied to the city, while about 130 trucks were lifted on Tuesday.
“By this evening the situation will ease off; I am just coming from the central area; the problem is mainly in the central area because there is fuel outside the city.
“The queues have started to go down because many of the filling stations that were not selling have begun to sell now because of the supply.
“Definitely by tomorrow morning the queue would have disappeared,” he said.
He said the scarcity became so pronounced because the problem came up over the weekend and there was no lifting of fuel which compounded the problem.
Mohammed, therefore, assured the public of adequate supply of products during the Christmas and the new year, stressing that there was enough stock at the depot to take care of the need of motorists.
He said the DPR had raised three surveillance teams to monitor the situation and ensure that no marketer sold above pump price or under-dispense to motorists.
He called on the residents to report any suspected manipulation by the fuel attendants at the stations to the appropriate authority.
He warned that any oil marketer indulged in sharp practice would be sanctioned accordingly by the agency.
He said such marketer would be suspended or get the licence withdrawn.