Petrol

Scarcity: Snags as Independent marketers opt out of 7-day ultimatum

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The Federal Government on Tuesday broke through the ranks of fuel marketers over seven-day ultimatum given to it to pay N800 billion subsidy claims.

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), one of the major bodies of marketers, has, as a result, opted of the ultimatum and urged Nigerians not to Panic because the nation NNPC Depots are filled with reserved products.

IPMAN also told the government to adopt heavy punitive measures against any marketer who join the strike because, according to them, “the action is so untimely and suspicious”.

Depot And Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), Independent Petroleum Products Importers (IPPs) and a section of Major Oil marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) have on Sunday declared that they would halt activities at depots nationwide if the government fails to meet up with payment of the subsidy in cash within seven days.

Speaking to Reporters in Kano the Zonal Chairman of IPMAN, Basheer Ahmad Danmallam, however said: “There is no basis for the Marketers who still received supply from NNPC and whose debt profile with government was inherited by the present government to adopt strike measure as the only solution to their problems.”

The N800 billion debts they have with government, he said, is the money that was not paid since the Obasanjo regime and that could not be use now as a yardstick to plunge Nigerians into serious untold hardship using the strike action.

Basheer Ahmad Danmallam reminded further that his association also has over N150 Billion Equalization debt funds with government, but they are not using the threats of strike to settled the issue.

The Chairman who oversees Kano, Katsina, Jigawa and Yobe States, explained that the Managing Director of PPMC/NNPC Umar I Ajiya has assured them that all the nation depots are filled to capacity with reserved Petroleum Products in case of any eventualities.

He said, ” with the commitment we have with the MD PPMC Umar I Ajiya the issue of Fuel scarcity is a foregone one and one can agree with me that now we are in December and go to every filling station you could see the flow of the products, and this will be maintain all through next year”.

Basheer Ahmad Danmallam said, “non of those Marketers who includes DAPMAN, MOMAN and others who do supply products to Nigeria but they all relied on NNPC that is why I said they should be sanction if they go on the strike action”.

However, he still appealed to the Federal Government to sit with the aggrieved Marketers and passion out areas of disagreement which bothered on the accumulated debt profile so that they settle out amicably.

Confirming the seven-day notice, Executive Secretary of DAPPMA, Mr. Olufemi Adewole, disclosed that the oil marketers on November 28 served the ultimatum letter on the Debt Management Office (DMO), Minister of Finance, Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum Downstream, Department of State Services and Minister of State, Petroleum Resources.

“We urge the DMO to process and pay marketers in cash for their outstanding forex differentials and interest component claims, together with the amount already approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and the National Assembly.

“Marketers are not in a position to discount payment on the subsidy-induced debt owed as proposed by DMO,” he said.

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