Ending fuel scarcity

SCARCITY of petrol has now become a perennial problem synonymous with the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (N.N.P.C) in this country. Federal government has been trying one way or another to put a stop to it. One occurred recently during which many people mostly commercial motor drivers and motorcyclists were forced out of their homes to line up at filling stations all over the country to purchase the commodity.

I went to one of the filling stations in Ibadan Metropolis myself to see situation of things. There, I saw a mammoth crowd with their vehicles queuing up waiting for station attendants to attend to them. Others brought in jerry cans, kegs and similar containers to buy the material. Quite a good number of them kept the night there. To defend the action of the federal government in the matter, a top official of the N.N.P.C came out to tell the people that government usually purchased the material at N171 per litre while the oil marketers sold it at N145 per litre according to what I heard from a privately owned radio station in Ibadan. Which means that federal government by this declaration from the official no longer subsidizes petrol as against the frequent claim?

Long before then, oil dealers had been complaining that selling petrol at #145 per litre does not pay them. Probably this is why some of them often raise the price of petrol without obtaining permission from the government which is the ideal thing to do. There were even speculations that government might increase the price of petrol either in 2018 or at another time in future but one government top official had refuted this saying that government did not have that intention. The way I see the matter, an abnormal increase now or in future will further compound the harsh economic problem which people are currently experiencing.

Besides thã it wjl sound amazing to people that government could do that considering the fact that Nigéja; our countris regarded as one of the leading producers of petroleum in the world. Instead of making an increase in the price of petrol which will not augur well for the nation, what I feel government should do is to improve upon our oil refineries to make them more productive, reorganize the N.N.P.C. itself, appoint experienced personnel to efficaciously manage its affairs and give thorough supervision to movement of oil to ensure they get to the real owners as against diversionary practice often made against oil lifting tank drivers by the people.

Similarly,federal government can procure its own vehicles to accelerate even distribution of the commodity to the people while interested oil marketers or other people should be allowed to bring petrol into the country. If government can do all these things, I am sure it will make things easy for the people thereby improving our sagging economy. Many people will even feel happier that government is receptive or sensitive to their plight.

• Ola-Olaniyi Bamgbola, 53, Agbeni Quarters, Ibadan.