Govt Edo Ensures End Of Fuel Scarcity, Receives 780,000 Gallons

The corrosive fuel scarcity and accompanying exploitative prices may soon be a thing of the past in Edo state, as the state government announced the delivery of 780,000 liters of the product and the creation of a task force to improve distribution and sales in service stations across the country.

The Commission for Mines and Energy, Etan Uzamere, assured a press conference on Tuesday that the scarcity in Benin will end and said that the supplied product would be distributed among large and independent marketers.

Flanked by Communications and Orientation Commissioner Chris Nehikhare and Crusoe Osagie, Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Publicity, the Commissioner emphasized that the state government would monitor fuel sales in the state to ensure that members of the the public were not exploited by the operators of the various filling stations.

Uzamere hinted that members of the Petroleum Monitoring Taskforce would be unveiled later Tuesday night, and assured that every effort would be made to ensure that no product supplied to Edo State is diverted elsewhere.

The press conference, which followed the meeting between the state government and civil society organizations in the state, the government said, became necessary to inform the people about the government’s efforts to mitigate the effect of fuel scarcity.

“The government has heard the cries of the people on the issue of fuel scarcity in the state. The state government is working to ensure product availability. As part of the measures, the government has set up a task force to monitor the situation and ensure that no citizen of Edo State is being exploited. We also want to announce that the state has already received 780,000 gallons of fuel that will be distributed to major and independent marketers and that the task force, whose members will be announced today before the end of work, will monitor distribution and sales,” said Uzamere.

Nehikhare also reiterated that “the issue of the welfare of the citizens of Edo State is very crucial and the government is taking it seriously. We understand the problem of fuel scarcity and take it very seriously. While distribution will not take place here in Edo State, we will ensure that the quantity allocated to Edo State is kept and sold here. Not a single liter of the 780,000 liters may be diverted”.

Nehikhare, while praising civil society organizations (CSOs) for the maturity shown in handling the protest that erupted Monday over the fuel crisis, said the government would continue to engage all stakeholders in an effort to find sustainable solutions to the problem.

In his remarks, the governor’s special adviser on media, Osagie, said part of the task force’s duties would be to monitor prices in the state.

“We want to warn people who inflate their prices that anyone caught will be severely punished according to the regulations of the law. The government will not take any prisoners in that regard as no Edo person is being exploited. We will be careful not to hurt Edo people. This administration is committed and will spare no effort to ensure normal gasoline prices in the state,” Osagie warned.

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