For over a week, authorities in Nigeria have been locked in a struggled to contend a sweltering fuel crisis which has engulfed the entire transport system and shut fares to over 150 per cent high in Abuja, Lagos and some other parts of the country.
Nigerians flocked filling stations and spent long hours queuing with little hope of buying a product whose raw material, crude, is a primary foreign exchange earner for the country; while black market sellers made brisk business, shooting the price to N500 per litre.
Coming nearly a month after NNPC’s quality inspectors reported emulsion-like content, methanol, in the fuel imported from Antwerp, Belgium, no end appears to be in sight for a crisis that has already deepened economic hardship and raised the prices of goods and services.
Without hesitation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, NNPC Limited, which is the sole importer of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, popularly called petrol, bears the blame for this avoidable suffering.
It is, therefore, no surprise that the company apologised for the misery inflicted on Nigerians. While the likes of MRS, Oando and others were named in the adulterated fuel saga, it has not been disputed that their transactions were done on behalf of the state-run company.
What is, however, appalling is that one month after the incident was reported, the NNPC has not mustered the boldness to bring sanctions on erring importers or individuals who failed so abysmally to properly carry out their duties; but the company resorts to assurances of ending scarcity while the erring importers get away with an obvious breach of trust.
Why should a regulatory body rely on the National Assembly to punish the misdemeanours of any organisation within its purview? Why are licensing agencies keeping quiet while the country groans?
The lacklustre response of relevant agencies to this grievous public affliction elicits suspicion, or perhaps conspiracies, of a full deregulation in the offing, or an imminent hike in the price of petrol given recent increase in the landing cost of petrol to over N300.
Of course, the suspicion of connivance with private companies to raise fuel prices and maximise gains has been old. With Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, saying that petrol shortage may last for another two weeks, many read the situation as a calculated attempt to put Nigerians in a difficult situation to force an ill-conceived outcome, perhaps, eventual removal of subsidy.
As frivolous as anyone may assume that these claims appear, they are obviously the readings of an average Nigerian into the failure of a government agency to penalise erring staff and partner organisations.
It’s reasonably natural that individuals and organisations involved in precipitating a national crisis of this magnitude be made to feel the guilt of their actions. While NNPC and its management must take drastic measures to punish this misconduct, we call on the local regulatory agencies in Belgium to look into the dubious exports from its Antwerp Port which have triggered a national crisis in Nigeria; as the PMS under scrutiny does not even meet our local consumption standards much more international standards for export.
Again, importation of methanol-tainted fuel into Nigeria and discharging it to consumer outlets was a gross failure of regulation. Our regulatory agencies, particularly the NNPC, must admit that they faltered and took their responsibility lightly.
If the fuel imported into Nigeria went through regular checks, why couldn’t their quality inspectors notice the emulsion particles at take-off point in Antwerp, Belgium? Palpable regulatory failures and disastrous management of the crisis spiraled into the biting scarcity currently being experienced across the country.
We must state that it is extremely unpatriotic to subject an entire nation to avoidable suffering for whatever reasons- pecuniary, or not. Where is the humanity of oil companies when Nigerians sleep at filling stations just to buy fuel for their vehicles and generators? Is this all for money? It is also surprising that amidst the scarcity, trade unions and pressure groups in the country have remained mum, suffering silently with masses.
Is it now customary for Nigerians to bear the brunt of mismanagement while those who engage in misrule, make money from their sufferings and turn around and blame them for not working hard?
