Motorists and other commuters in Lagos face a difficult time as scarcity of fuel resurfaces in the metropolis.
Private and commercial vehicles queue at fuel stations, especially on Ikorodu Road and Lagos Island.
From Aguda to Lawanson, to Ojuelegba in Surulere, and Yaba and Alagomeji in Ebute Metta, long queues were seen with disputes at some point in the quest to get the commodity.
People do not seem to know the cause of the commodity’s scarcity as some fuel stations remain under lock and keys.
A commercial bus driver, who identified himself as Friday, spoke to our Correspondent at a fuel station around the Lawanson bus stop in Surulere said many of the stations hoarded and sold above the pump price.
“They are selling, but if you want to buy one thousand naira fuel, they will collect an extra two hundred and fifty naira, and when you asked, they will say it is because of scarcity.”
When we spoke with one of the attendants at the filling station, she told our man that “we have limited fuel, if you want to buy nine thousand, five hundred naira fuel, you will need to give me an extra five hundred, so you have to pay ten thousand of you are serious about buying.”
Black market retailers of the product have also resurfaced, majorly around the stations, selling five litres of fuel between two thousand and three thousand five hundred naira.
The situation has led to a hike in transport fares, as passengers going to CMS from Aguda in Surulere now pay five hundred for a three hundred naira journey.
According to a resident, Mrs Yetunde Ayoola, Iyana Oworo to Ajah, which used to be around three hundred naira, is now five hundred naira.
In a statement by the Managing Director, Group Public Affairs Division of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation , Mr. Garba Deen Muhammad, on Wednesday, January 26, the Group warned against panic-buying and assured Nigerians that it remained deeply committed to ensuring energy security for the country.
Residents are, however, appealing to the Federal Government to take urgent steps to avert full-scale scarcity of petrol.