“How Some State Governors Show Less Concern As Fuel Scarcity Bites Harder”

Governors, especially four of the Southwest States’ governors who assumed governorship seats in Oyo, Ogun, Osun and Lagos States on the platform of All Progressives Congress ‎(APC) and the other two in Ondo and Ekiti States led by People’s Democratic Party (PDP) are indifferent to president’s effort aimed at making fuel available to common men.
According to a report by BusinessDay across six Southwest States revealed governors and government officials are reluctant to support Federal Government policy of N86.50 per litre for pump price of petroleum at the service stations across the country since several owners of fuel depots and PMS marketers are their cronies, leaving consumers who voted for them to suffer.
From major cities such as Ikeja, Lagos Island, Ajah, Epe, Otta, Agbara, Ibadan, Abeokuta, Akure, Owo, Oyo, Osogbo, Ilesa, Ado-Ekiti ‎to remote towns and villages in all the six Southwest states, fuel is sold between N300 and N200 per litre at the weekend, giving unwanranted impetus and confidence to fuel black marketers to display the product along major roads at very exhorbitant prices, which in return, has skyrocketed transport fares and prices of goods and services.
A cross section of motorists and consumers who spoke with‎ BusinessDay in Osogbo, Abeokuta, Otta, Ibadan, Owo, Akure and Ado-Ekiti argued that the State governments in the region are indifferent to their plights as they allow greedy fuel marketers to fleece them of their hard-earned money in order to get the product, adding that even though President Buhari is aware of the sufferings Nigerians undergo in the hands of greedy marketers of prmium motor spirit (PMS).
Investigations also revealed that major marketers such as MRS, Forte Oil, Total, Mobil, Conoil, Oando and others that sell fuel at the official pump price of N86.50 ‎didn’t have PMS in their tanks, some service stations belonging to some major marketers that had the product either compromised with the black marketers and opened fuel nozzles at midnight or had touts collecting bribes from motorists before PMS was sold during the day.
Bolaji Gbadeyanka, a commercial driver who spoke with BusinessDay at Olaiya area of Osogbo in Osun State on Sunday said that “fuel black marketing is the order of the day in Osogbo and its environs, just as he declared that fuel price per litre whether from service stations’ pumps or black marketers went for N200 and N250 in Osogbo, the Osun State Capital and some remote rural areas.
Gbadeyanka, who attributed the bad situation to failure of Governor Rauf Aregbesola-led Osun State Government to monitor activities of oil marketers across the State and allowed poor people of Osun to be fleeced by greedy oil marketers, added that if nothing was done to cushion effect of bad economic situation and dubious action of geedy oil marketers as quick as possible, people might be pushed to the wall and things might go out of control.
In Akure, Ondo State ‎Capital and other cities, prices of fuel was between N200 and N300 and fuel black marketing activities were noticeable every where, giving an indication that no government officials monitored and enforced the official pump price of petroleum, just as commercial driver, Adewale Ojo, who shuttles between Akure and Owo, told our Correspondent that Governor Segun Mimiko had been busy with issues of PDP and coming elections in the State.
In Ekiti and Oyo States, cases of black marketing ‎and inflated prices of petroleum product were the same as many people were seen carrying varied sizes of gallons in search of petroleum for domestic usage, generators and vehicles fuelling since two major electricity distributors in the zone – Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) and Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) worsened the situation with a very poor supply of electricity, prompting endless search for PMS in the zone.
In Ogun State, Ministry of Commerce and Industry‎ was used to be proactive in the enforcement of the official pump price, but seemed to be helpless and irresponsive to the plights of suffering masses as oil marketers sold the product at different exorbitant prices which prompted many residents to doubt seriousness of Governor Ibikunle Amosun-led State government on its fight and passion for the masses that it seems to be saying every time.
But, Bimbo Ashiru, Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, who spoke on phone in Abeokuta with our Correspondent, declared that government had noticed dubious activities of these oil marketers who sell above the official pump price of N86.50, adding that government officials from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry would start enforcing sales of the product at official pump price from Monday (today).
He said, “we have noticed that, and I have directed my people to start monitoring and enforcing the sales of the product across the State on Monday ‎(today). They (marketers) must sell fuel at official pump price. Anybody that flouts the order will have himself to blame.