Fuel: Residents call on DPR to check hoarding in Badagry

Some residents of Badagry, Lagos State, on Tuesday urged officials of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to pay unscheduled visits to the town to check excesses of some filling station owners.

The residents told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Badagry that many petrol filling stations in the ancient town were either not dispensing fuel to motorists or selling above the government-approved pump price of N87 per litre.

Mr Yemi Akintayo, a lawyer, urged DPR to check the sharp practices of some fuel stations in the town.

“Many of the fuel stations here don’t sell their products until the night and they sell above the official price.

“This shows that many of the fuel stations have fuel but they deliberately don’t sell the product so they can make extra money through their malpractices.

“The DPR should come to Badagry to caution and fine those stations involved in this act so as to ease the hardship that people are going through because of the hoarding,’’ he said.

Mr Femi Ajibade, a businessman, told NAN that the scarcity had brought untold hardship on his business and family.

“This scarcity has been going on for over a month and it has brought unbearable hardship to my business and also my family.

“I have been on this queue for over two hours and because of that, I have lost two clients due to the unnecessary delay that this whole situation has caused.

“This is not right at all and it’s the masses that usually suffer this kind of thing,’’ he said.

Mr Yakuba Abdul, a commercial motorcycle operator, said that the scarcity had affected his operations.

“Usually, I come out every day for my okada business but now, I can’t do that because of the scarcity and it is really telling on me.

“I don’t make enough money to cater for my needs and for my family; this is as a result of lack of fuel as I don’t have fuel to run my business.

“The government should intervene and put an end to this crisis once and for all,’’ he said.

Some other motorists and commuters, who spoke to NAN, also lamented the pain the fuel scarcity had caused them, pleading with the government to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

NAN correspondent in Badagry reports that fuel scarcity in the area has worsened since Monday, with long queues resulting in traffic gridlock near filling stations.

Along the Seme/Badagry Expressway, most filling stations were shut; with only two stations selling petrol for N150 per litre.