Fuel scarcity: Kwara warns marketers against hoarding

The Kwara government on Wednesday warned petroleum products marketers in the state against hoarding or causing artificial scarcity.

The government also ordered the marketers to sell the products to the general public to avert transportation crisis.

The Special Assistant to the Governor on Petroleum Monitoring, Alhaji Isiaka Amubieya, who led a task-force team to monitor the situation in Ilorin issued the warning.

Besides, Amubieya warned the proprietors that punitive measures awaited any defaulters.

He threatened that the government would deal ruthlessly with 'saboteurs' who feed fat on unsuspecting members of the public.

At the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Mega Station on Ajase-Ipo road, the governor's aide directed the filling station to resume sales or risk sanction.

The aide, who discovered that the reserve tank in the station had 2,400 litres of petrol, ordered its Manager, Mr Olasunkanmi Ojo, to dispense the product to members of the public.

It was the same scenario at the AP filling station at the University of Ilorin permanent site as the station was allegedly hoarding the product.

Similar directive by the governor's aide forced the station to dispense the more than 6,000 litres of the product to the buyers.

A News Agency of Nigeria correspondent who was on the entourage reports that buyers used the opportunity to make panic purchases.

While monitoring the sale at the Forte Oil also on Ajase-Ipo road, Amubieya enjoined the station to avoid hoarding and sell according to the approved price.

However, it took the intervention of the monitoring team before orderliness could be restored at another NNPC Mega Station at Tanke area as vehicles and motorcycles struggled to outsmart each other.

At Rockfield on Fate Road, the special assistant ordered the station to dispense the 7,000 litres in its stock to members of the public without delay.

Other petrol stations inspected were Dola Bimbola on Tanke/Oke-Odo and Mobil in Offa-Garage.