The Federal Government has denied rumors of a petrol price increase to N897 per liter, despite widespread speculation and acute scarcity in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Contrary to reports of a Ministry of Petroleum Resources directive to sell fuel at N1,000 above the approved pump price, the government maintains that there has been no price hike.
However, motorists in Abuja faced long queues at filling stations, with many major NNPC stations shut down due to alleged product unavailability or speculation of an impending price increase.
Stranded motorists resorted to buying fuel from the black market at exorbitant prices, ranging from N1,200 to N1,400 per liter, depending on their bargaining power.
One motorist, Uchenna Ndibe, reported buying fuel for N950 per liter from Silvery Resource filling station in Mararaba, Nasarawa State, near Abuja.
The scarcity and black market sales have caused hardship for many motorists in the region.
“No one told me to stop and buy it at any cost when my fuel gauge was turning red last night. But, do you know what? It was N950/liter at the Silvery Resource filling station where I bought. Unbelievable! Is that not black market in filling station? This is definitely unsustainable. I think government needs to find a way of regulating this” he lamented.
Musa Adamu, a civil servant told our reporter that he was forced to park his car at home and use commercial bus to work, lamenting that transport fare has doubled due to the growing scarcity.
“The situation is taking a toll on every facet of human lives. Imagine I parked my car and took a commercial bus at twice the usual price, up the hill along the Kigbo axis the bus stopped, fuel finished. The conductor called these black market hustlers along the roads and they told him it is N1.400 per liter or no deal. This country is suffocating all of us and it is no longer funny” stated Adamu.
But in a statement, the Minister for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, denied ever issuing such directive to the the Nigerian National Petroleum Company NNPC Limited, describing it as entirely devoid of truth, urging that the statement be recognised as an intentional effort to mislead the public.
According to the statement, signed by the Special Adviser, Media and Communication, to Lokpobiri, Nneamaka Okafor, on Tuesday and made available to our correspondent, the FG declared that the report was concocted and ill-conceived to sow discord and confusion in the oil industry.
The statement stressed that there was never a time the FG interfered with petroleum pricing with NNPCL, let alone give directives for price increment.
The statement read, “The Federal Government is compelled to address the outright falsehoods currently being circulated on social media, which claim that the Minister of Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has directed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to inflate petroleum prices above the approved pump price.
“We categorically condemn these claims as baseless, malicious, and a deliberate attempt to incite public discontent. We challenge anyone in possession of any evidence-be it written documents, audio, or video recordings-that supports these fabrications to make it public.
“Such a claim is entirely devoid of truth and should be recognised as an intentional effort to mislead the public. It must be stressed that NNPCL operates as an independent entity under the Companies and Allied Matters Act, with a fully empowered Board of Directors.
The Ministry of Petroleum Resources does not, and will not, interfere in the internal decisions of NNPCL, including pricing matters. Any suggestion otherwise is not only incorrect but also reveals a profound misunderstanding of the deregulated nature of Nigeria’s petroleum sector.”
