Fuel Scarcity Hits Lagos, Ogun, Abuja
Petrol scarcity hit different parts of Nigeria on Tuesday, forcing motorists to spend hours at filling stations while battling to get the product.
Black marketers had a field day, selling a litre of fuel at N300-N400 in many parts of the country. Many motorists were forced to patronise them as the unpalatable alternative was to wait for hours in filling stations.
Amid long queues and waiting hours in Lagos, some filling stations sold a litre of the Premium Motor Spirit at N200/litre as against the approved price of N180-N185/litre.
Some filling stations around Ikotun, Egbeda and Ojodu Berger areas on Monday and Tuesday witnessed long queues at the few stations that managed to sell.
A businessman, Kayode Oloriegbe, said he could not wait to buy from filling stations, but had to patronise a black marketer who sold at N300/litre.
“I was lucky to buy a 10-litre gallon at N3,500. Others said they bought at higher prices from the black marketers,” he said.
A tricyclist, Ade, who operates between Ago Palace Way and Second Rainbow Bus Stop at Amuwo-Odofin, said, “Black marketers sell five litres at N1,700 at Ago Palace during the day and N2500 at night. This is a normal thing. Whenever we are approaching the end of the year, we mostly witness fuel scarcity.”
A reporter who went round the Isolo, Okota and Ilasa axis in Lagos witnessed that only one out of six petrol stations around that axis sold petrol to motorists and other consumers. Others said they did not have petrol.
Two NNPC filling stations before Sule Abore Street in Ojodu were shut.
The attendants at the filling stations said that they had run out of fuel. They, however, said they were expecting to get the supply before the end of yesterday (Tuesday).
At Bova’s filling station, a long queue caused traffic gridlock along Ogba road as of the time of filing this report.
Similarly, a long queue was sighted at Rainoil filling at Berger Roundabout, with some drivers alleging that they were charged an extra N300 by fuel attendants. The attendants declined to speak with our correspondent.
At the Eterna Oil filling station located before Afeez Bus Stop, Ojodu Berger, there was also a long queue.
One of the fuel attendants said the trucks that were supposed to supply them with fuel did not turn up.
A similar long queue was seen at the Amuf Oil filling station at the Grammar School Bus Stop, Ojodu Berger.
An attendant at Oando filling station, Aguda, after Omole Bus Stop, who spoke with The Punch, told one of our correspondents that the flood that occurred a few days ago caused fuel prices to shoot up at depots, making it difficult for many stations to sell at regulated prices.
Checks by one of our correspondents revealed that many of the petrol stations along Alagbole/Akute/Denro/Ajuwon axis were shut due to the unavailability of petrol, while some of the filling stations witnessed small crowds of motorists jostling to manoeuvre through the queues.
It was also observed that while some of the filling stations sold at N180/litre, others sold as high as N185 as motorists flooded forecourts of gas stations in search of petrol.
A motorist, who identified himself as Alabi, said he had tried to get the product from more than three different stations on Tuesday before retiring out of frustration.
“When I came back from work yesterday, I tried at least three different filling stations, all to no avail. None of them sold. This one is out of the blue. The country is just becoming frustrating. Here, they sell at N180. By the time you come tomorrow, they might sell at N190.”
On the Iyana-Iba – Egbeda axis, only two filling stations (Oando and Total) were sold as at the time of this report while the gates of other stations, including the ones belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), were under lock and key.