BENIN – Ethan Uzamere, the Edo State Commissioner for Mining and Energy, has explained why his ministry could not wade into the current scarcity of petroleum products in the state and its price hike, saying the problem now was that the product was not available and as such nobody could blame it on the marketers.
It is a Free For all Now Prices are ranging from 200 To 400 Naira A Litre !
The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, at the weekend, teed-off the 2022 Alaghodaro Golf Tournament at the Benin Club Golf Course, Benin City, the Edo State capital.
Obaseki, at the ceremonial tee-off, said his government, in the last six years, has reset the state, placing it on the path of sustainable growth and development.
Speaking to journalists at a media parley in Benin City, the commissioner said in the past and “in a situation like the one we are going through now, a monitoring team will be sent out to find out the problem but in the present scarcity, we have discovered that it is not the fault or the making of the dealers.
“To find out what was going on, I had to go and do the research and see where these filling stations get their products from, and how much product is given to them from there we now track what is going on with them and their stations, it is quite unfortunate what is going on is the lack of access to products especially the PMS and I want to say it’s not a matter that is just domiciled in the state.
“One of the major reasons why they don’t have access to this product is because of the access of roads for this logistic issue, the trucks cannot bring products here and the issue of the flood erosion in the country that we are all aware of is also adding to the problem.
“There is a limit of regulation that can be done under the present scarcity, especially with independent marketers.
“People should understand that there are different kinds of filling stations, some are independent marketers and there are the major marketers, the major marketers can be a bit regulated but the independent marketers you can’t regulate them because it is a market, if you buy something at one naira, you are expected to sell it higher and not lower.
