Uncertainties, intrigues and the face-off between Federal Government and labour unions may have created an avenue for some marketers of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to return to smuggling or hoarding as Nigeria’s daily consumption witnessed by over a 25 million litres surge.
Motorists and commuters have resorted to panicky measures to secure the product.
Nigerians across regions, yesterday, lamented scarcity of petrol and the attendant price hike.
The current crisis followed a supposed exit from payment of subsidy, which was announced in March last year and the eventual deregulation of the downstream sector. Under the arrangement, the control of pump price is expected to be determined by market forces, especially crude oil price and exchange.
Labour unions, especially the Nigerian Labour Union and the Trade Union Congress, could not stand the speed at which the pump price was heading as crude oil price rebalances in the international market had held government by the throat after succeeding in reducing the price from N167 to N162 per litre.
The current crisis is despite assurance by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Dr. Kennie Obateru, that the Corporation was not contemplating any raise in the price of petrol in March in order not to jeopardize ongoing engagements with organised labour and other stakeholders on an acceptable framework that would not expose the ordinary Nigerian to any hardship.
He equally cautioned petroleum products marketers not to engage in arbitrary price increase or hoarding of petrol so as not to create artificial scarcity and unnecessary hardship for Nigerians.
Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), which has closed down a lot of their stations had told reporters that the queues may linger as there is already scarcity of petrol in most private depots while the ex-depot price, which was last week at N158 has gone up to N167.
It is however hoped that with the Proclamation from the government these cues will gradually ease off and the situation will go back to normal.