Checkmating the dubious petroleum marketers
By UMORU IBRAHIM
IN the wake of Christmas celebration, Nigerians woke up to discover that petroleum products hitherto in abundant supply became once again a very scarce commodity. Sadly, no explanation was forthcoming from either independent marketers or the government.
This silence, which is both undignified and conspiratorial, led credence to speculations by most Nigerians that the scarcity was kite flown by federal government to once again hike oil prices.
This scarcity, which turns out to be artificial based on latest information, rendered yuletide period a very dull moment as most Nigerians could not travel while those who managed to pay from their nose due to hike in cost of transportation.
Disturbingly, Nigerians who should be in their various places to celebrate the season spent a greater part of their hours queuing in various filling stations for fuel.
Irked by increasing rate of accusation, the federal government has exonerated itself from the scarcity just as it accused the independent marketers as responsible for the crisis.
In an interview granted at the weekend, the special assistant to the President on political matters, Chief Akin Osuntokun told journalists that the scarcity was caused by independent marketers who hoarded the commodity in anticipation of increase in price of petroleum products.
According to him, the federal government has no intention to increase the price of the commodity, adding that the government will impose sanction on any independent marketer found to be hoarding the commodity.
Reacting to the same issue, the Group General Manager, Public Affairs division, the Nigeria National Petroleum Cooperation (NNPC), Dr. Levi Ajuonuma said that his corporation had no idea where the dealers and independent marketers got their dubious information about government’s plan to hike fuel prices.
With these claims, it is obvious that the scarcity is caused by the independent marketers, who hoarded the commodity in anticipation of higher profit in the event of increase in price of the commodity by the government.
This unpatriotic conduct by marketers who are minute segment of Nigerian society, must be seen as act of sabotage which must not be handled with kid’s globes.
The government must be aware that the mere statement of exoneration can hardly convince Nigerians of its innocence in this anti-social conducts. In fact its readiness to deal decisively with the erring marketers will serve as deterrent to any other who may wish to similarly hold the country to ransom in the future.
This is important considering the fact that Nigeria’s progress has been consistently retarded by activities of these micro-political, economic and social groups mounting serious pressure on the system.
Nigeria is no doubt a very funy country. In fact, in almost all instances, the more you see the less you understand.
The country is large and the population is over 140 million. Indeed, the numerical advantage it enjoys among all black nations is a fact no one can conveniently contradict.
Its resources, human and material, have placed it on a higher pedestal in terms of potentiality to grow.
This, to an extent, had led to a far-reaching expectation that all things being equal, Nigeria will be the country to beat in realms of socio-political and economic development in the near future.
This assertion and expectation have been reinforced by the ways in which intelligent Nigerians have been instrumental to economic and technological transformation of some countries in the world.
One may therefore ask why inspite of all these potentialities to grow and its wonderful human resources, the country remains perpetually at the lower part in ladder of development to the extent that even the petroleum product produced locally remains inadequate for the people.
The simple answer to this is that we are where we are because different segment of our elites conspire to retard the country’s efforts to attain appreciable level of development through placing their selfish economic interest over and above those of the people.
To satisfy their inordinate economic interest, this segment of elites usually hold the entire nation to ransom. There is no doubt that the political and economic instability the country has suffered from since independence, can be linked to the extent their anti-thesis has brought tension to bear on our polity and crises to our economy.
When they are not conspiring to bring political problems, they are certainly to cause economic crises, both of which have negative impact on the ordinary people of his country.
Although, the government has blamed the scarcity on independent marketers, thereby exonerating itself from the crises, it is difficult not to see its hands in the current fuel crises.
If government officials have not forgotten, the major fear expressed by Nigerians in the wake of privatisation of the down stream of oil sector, was that so-called independent marketers will capitalise on government liberal position to create artificial scarcity of petroleum product. So, how come it is not able to monitor those marketers who had waited patiently till the end of year to hoard the vital commodity like petroleum in order to worsen the already bad situation for the people?
As stated above, nothing but genuine efforts of the government can solve this problem. The regulatory agency must therefore stop at nothing in addressing the issue. It should not hesitate to revoke licenses of any marketer found to be involved in this callous activities. Government must not only blacklist the dubious marketers, it must adequately publicise their anti-people activities for the entire world to see. This, the government must do without fear or favour.
Unless this is manifestly done, no one will allow himself to be fooled by government efforts to claim ignorance of the root of these crises.
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