Petrol scarcity and long queues at filling stations have returned to the streets of Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
It was alleged that the indebtedness of the Federal Government has crippled the marketers’ effective procurement and distribution capacity.
According to the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), the government was owing more than N100 billion in overdue bridging payments.
IPMAN said that the N100 billion debt due on procured petrol by the defunct Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), now Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), has not been paid despite persistent demand.
The association’s National Vice President Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi, said the unpaid debts have resulted in cash constraints, which he said was hampering members’ capacity to procure more products.
According to him, the re-emerging petrol scarcity “has just started and it will continue”.
