Fuel queue: No cause for alarm -PPPRA---businessdayonline

The executive secretary of the Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Oluwole Oluleye, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja that "there is no cause for alarm concerning the queues noticed on Friday and today in the metropolis."

Oluleye said the city usually experienced heavy purchasing of the commodity on Fridays and Mondays, which did not translate into scarcity.

He also said the FCT’s fuel reserve depot in Suleja was over stretched and exhausted as fuel could not be lifted at the weekend, coupled with the public holidays during the election period.

The executive secretary assured that normalcy would be restored within the next two days.

He added that the PPPRA had contacted NNPC and DPR to find out if any filling station had been closed down but discovered that the situation was normal.

Commenting on the fears of possible price hike in fuel and other petroleum products, the general manger, corporate affairs of the PPPRA, Wole Adamolekun, said there was no such plans.

He said the queue being experienced within the FCT should not be misconstrued for possible hike in prices of the products.

Adamolekun said "we do not anticipate any serious problems in the system and the current situation would correct itself in no time.’’

He added that, "there is availability of fuel, and the fuel is being lifted steadily so by Tuesday, everything will return to normalcy .’’

NAN checks at some fuel stations showed that though there were queues, but sales were going on and the rowdy situations always experienced during such scarcity, was not there.

NAN reports that at SEA Petroleum and Gas stations, there was scanty queue while the product was being sold at its normal price.

An official at one of the stations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that "we have been selling fuel at it normally prices."

However, there was longer queue at Conoil station opposite the NNPC building, and vehicle owners who spoke to NAN expressed hope that they would get fuel shortly.

One Taiye Yusuf said, he preferred to buy fuel in the station, in spite of the long queue because there were many pump-outlets discharging the product at the same time.

He said "almost every Monday is a busy day at the petrol filling stations, so I am used to it, but it may not be like this tomorrow .’’

NAN also reports that most commuters were stranded as there were few buses plying the highway.