While reacting to the news of harsh fuel scarcity in the country, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has finally given a tangible explanation as to why there is fuel scarcity in Lagos and other parts of the country.
Akin Akinrinade who is the Lagos Zonal Chairman of IPMAN had in an interview with Channels Television, insisted they were not on strike.
Akinrinade noted that the operating environment has become hostile to their businesses.
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He also insisted the marketers had not embarked on strike as speculated.
“Members of Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria IPMAN have shut down their stations, not because we are striking; we are not on strike,” Akinrinade said.
“Rather, the business environment has been very hostile to us such that we can no longer do business under this condition. For you to load a litre of petrol, you pay in N162 per litre,” he added.
Akinrinade said that it was no longer feasible to sell the product at the recommended price of N165 to a litre, adding that the landing cost of petrol was between ₦175 to ₦178 naira to the litre.
“Our members can no longer sell (petrol) at ₦165 per litre; in fact, there is no reasonable person in this business that can sell below N180 per litre, so it is not as if we are on strike,” he concluded.
IPMAN had previously fingered the inadequate supply of petrol from the depots in Lagos for the scarcity being experienced in Abuja and other parts of the country. They had announced that marketers and transporters are now finding it difficult to bridge products to other parts of the country from the depots.
