By Peregba Jerry
Marketers of the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) petrol have raised the alarm over the lightness of the product in some retail outlets, noting that it is inferior to the quality the Nigerian Midstream and Upstream Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) approved.
They described some of the products imported to Nigeria as evaporating and undurable.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), National Vice President, Mr. John Keke Ocha, broke the news at Natural Oil and Gas Suppliers Association of Nigeria (NOGASA) National Executive Council (NEC) in Abuja.
According to him, lack of adequate legitimate domestic refining of petroleum has paved the way for the importation of all manners of products to meet consumer needs.
Explaining that absence of in – country refining has led to the importation of different grades of petrol, he lamented that the consumers have no choice.
He advised the Federal Government to look inward to ensure the national and private refineries are functional.
His words: “The prayer of this house is that government must look inward to ensure our refineries are put to use to create room for reduction of these high petroleum products importation as we are saying today.
“A lot of people don’t use their vehicles again. If you put N20,000 or N30,000 fuel in your car, before two days the thing is gone. I don’t know whether it is evaporating. “Sometimes, I ask myself what has happened to the N30,000 fuel that I bought yesterday. The thing (fuel gauge) has started showing red.
“I don’t know if the type of product we have is no more like the original product that we used to get.
“This is because the competition has made it convenient for importers to get very light and all kinds of product to the country. And we accommodate it because we don’t have alternative.
“But if we produce it in this country, we will have choice. If we produce in this country, we will select. If we produce in this country, it will make it even more competitive and cheaper.
“That is the prayer of this house: the government must look inward and make life easy for people by making sure refineries are put in place to function.”
But the NMDPRA Corporate Communnications General Manager, Mr. Kimchi Apollo was not reachable on phone to state the Authority’s side of the story.
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