Yuletide: Fuel scarcity looms as FG, Marketers fight over N50bn bridging claim
By Oluwaseun Ayodeji
As Christmas and New year celebration approach, petroleum marketers under the aegis of Northern Independent Petroleum forum have threatened to embark on an industrial strike action over refusal of the Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF)to pay over N50 billion bridging claim.
This disclosure was made by the forum’s chairman, Alhaji Musa Maikifi in a press statement issued on Sunday in Kano State.
Maikifi in the statement accused PEF management of deliberate making the marketers to go through hard times by refusing to settle the N50 billion Bridging Claim for over nine months.
According to him, failure to settle the claims may force many out of business and lead to scarcity of fuel in the North, adding that the majority of its members have ran out of capital, hence could not buy and transport fuel to the region.
According to the statement, Maikifi made the lamentation during a meeting with the Forum’s members from the nine depots across the Northern states, at Ni’ima Guest Palace in Kano on Saturday.
He said for the past nine months they had made efforts to get their money paid but in vain.
“If this continues in this way so many of us will have to close down our fuel stations. This will add to the fuel scarcity in the region because the marketers have no capital.
“The Federal Government couldn’t settle our claims of over N50 billion. We met the authority involved and they promised to pay us but yet they haven’t.
“So, that is why we are here to plead with them to pay us our unsettled claims so that we can continue our business smoothly,” he lamented.
According to him, they formed the Northern Independent Petroleum Marketers Forum to always have one voice that will speak on their behalf, adding that the leadership crisis rocking the IPMAN has also added to their burden which their Forum is ready to address.
Alhaji Zarma Mustapha, said the bridging claims were supposed to have been paid within two weeks but for months now they are not settled, and that over 3000 marketers from the north are involved.
“One thing that will surprise you is that this money does not belong to the Government. It is generated from the consumers that purchased fuel from us marketers and the NNPC gathered the money and then pay us through PEF. But still they hold our money.
“Presently you can see that there is fuel scarcity here and there in the north, and if we enter January, February without our claims settled, I assure you that we can’t do it, we can’t do the business,” he said.
He urged President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of State for Petroleum to intervene into the matter to help them sustain their business.
Efforts to get reaction of PEF was abortive as at the time of going to the press but it will be recalled that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd, has assured Nigerians that there is enough products to last through the Xmas and New year celebrations.
According to Garba Deen Muhammad, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division,of NNPC, the Company “stock has risen from a reserve of 1.7 billion litres to over two billion litres within the last one month”.
While thanking Nigerians for always heeding its advisories not to engage in panic buying of petrol, Mr. Muhammad said “the NNPC is once again giving Nigerians strong assurance that we have product sufficiency that will last far beyond the festive period”.
