The Department state service has issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) and other stakeholders in the oil sector to resolve the ongoing fuel crisis within 48 hours. DSS Spokesman, Peter Afunanya announced the directive while briefing journalists at the headquarters of service in Abuja after a closed-door meeting with stakeholders in the petroleum sector.
He said failure to comply, the DSS will activate its operations across the country. Afunanya says the challenge of fuel scarcity is detrimental to the security of the country. He revealed that during the meeting, the NNPC agreed that there is enough product that will serve Nigerians during and after the Yuletide season.
For weeks, vehicle owners especially in Lagos and Abuja have had a tough time getting petrol from filling stations. Whilst many outlets are closed, the few ones that are open sell the indispensable commodity for as high as N250 per litre from the uniform price of N169/litre.
The shortage of supply has led to long, grueling snake-like queues at the few open filling stations as motorists and business owners jostle to buy fuel while others resort to black market. The situation has also worsen traffic on major roads as vehicle owners block at least one lane to join queues to filling station. The meeting was a attended by officials of NNPCL, IPMAN, NUPENG, NARTO MOMAN, DEPMAN among others.
