Should the ongoing strike embarked upon
by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria be
allowed to linger beyond Wednesday, most depots in Apapa, Lagos, will
run out of fuel stock, our correspondent has learnt.
Following the commencement of the strike
on Thursday, loading at Apapa depots, where many marketers get
petroleum products to other states, has been reduced due to the absence
of workers of the Petroleum Equalisation Fund Board.
The PEF personnel usually certify
marketers’ trucks to enable them to get bridging funds for fuel being
transported to distant parts of the country.
It was gathered that marketers were only
loading to Lagos and other South-West states that required no payment
of bridging fund by the PEF.
The Federal Government had said it would meet with the leadership of PENGASSAN today (Monday) in a bid to resolve the problem.
A source, who is an official of an
independent marketing company in Lagos, said, “Terminal owners can only
load what is in their tanks, but they cannot receive any product now
from vessels. If they finish what is in their tanks now and bring in any
vessel, the Department of Petroleum Resources is not going to certify
it for discharge. They do a lot of tests on any product that comes to
Apapa.
“That is how it is going to affect the
supply in Lagos if the strike lingers on. Depots in Apapa should finish
their stock on or before Wednesday. I don’t see any depot that will
still have stock after Wednesday in Apapa.”
The Chairman, Trade Union Congress,
Rivers State chapter, Mr. Chika Onuegbu, said fuel distribution was the
smallest bit of what would go wrong as a result of the PENGASSAN strike.
Onuegbu said, “I think the main impact
will be this week when production facilities, export terminals and gas
supply to power plants will be shut down. It will affect the
government’s revenue significantly. I pray we don’t get to that extent,
because the economy is already in a bad shape.
“That is why the government should act fast and engage the union to resolve the issues.”
The Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation on Friday cautioned members of the public against embarking
on any form of panic purchase of petroleum products in anticipation of
scarcity due to the ongoing strike.
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