From Tunde Omolehin, Sokoto
The Sokoto State branch of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), has attributed the current fuel scarcity in the state to unpaid claims.
The group also explained that marketers were restricted only to Gusau depot for the supply of the commodity which had stopped functioning because of damaged pipeline.
Reacting to the recent threat by the state government to withdraw the certificate of occupancy of any filling station found hoarding or selling above the government approved price of N145,
The IPMAN Zonal Secretary, Alhaji Sanusi Kware said they now rely on private depot in Lagos state for supply which is selling at N140 per liter as against the N133.28 approved by the government.
He added that they spent N15 to transport each liter to Sokoto, therefore they could not sell the commodity at less than N155 per liter.
“We cannot go to Kaduna Refinery for supply because our Bulk Purchase Agreement restricts us only to Gusau Unit. We want our state Governor to intervene so that we can buy the commodity at Kaduna Refinery,” he said.
According to him, this would reduce their cost of transportation and would lead to the availability of fuel in the state.
He said that many of their members have unpaid claims dated back to 2015 and one of them had even lost all his capital to way bills.
He described the decision of the government as unfair as nobody invited them to hear their own story.