DPR Seals Fuel Service Stations In Abuja Amidst Biting Petrol Scarcity

The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has sealed off three petrol stations in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, for selling petrol to customers above the approved pump price of 86 Naira 50 Kobo.

The zonal coordinator of the regulatory body, Mr Mohammed Musa, who led an inspection tour round the area councils of the FCT to check compliance, said the excuse by the petrol station managers that they bought the product above the selling price and not directly from the depots was not an admissible reason for defaulting.

He said the reason for not giving the products away to the customers free of charge, as done previously, was to avoid the risk of any casualties that might be recorded, as customers struggle to get the free product.

According to him, the inspection will continue until the resolution of the fuel crisis already causing Nigerians serious hardships.

Queues of motorcycles, tricycles known as Keke Napep, and other vehicles on roadsides around fuel stations have become a common sight in the FCT for nearly three months now.

But what is not a common sight is pump prices above the approved price, a development that had triggered the tour of some fuel service stations in major area councils of the FCT by the DPR to check compliance by petrol stations.

A fuel service station along the airport road in Abuja was selling petrol to customers at 150 Naira per litre and the DPR wasted no time in sealing it off.

Also in Gwagwalada, on the outskirts of Abuja, the fuel meter of a service station was adjusted to sell less petrol for more money. When measured by the DPR, a litre of fuel showed 1.49 litres on the metre of the dispensing pump. The station was also sealed off.

The zonal coordinator of the DPR said no excuse was admissible for short-changing customers or taking advantage of their suffering.

Also unacceptable to the regulatory body was sales of the product to persons who market them on roadsides with jerry cans.

They destroyed jerry cans found lined up for petrol and said plans must be made to arrest persons found selling the product illegally.

They said the compliance enforcement, which was also taking place across other states, would continue until the fuel crises was over, insisting that independent marketers must comply.