The Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) in Edo cracked down on fuel stations hoarding fuel and selling it at prices higher than the approved pump price of N165 on Saturday.
According to reports, the exercise took the corps around fuel stations on Airport Road, Akpakpava Road, Sapele Road, and Ugbo Road, all of which are located within the state capital.
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NAN also reports that fuel stations charging more than N165 per litre were ordered to reduce their prices to no more than N165, despite the fact that the majority of fuel stations were found to be charging between N205 and N220 per litre.
During the exercise, Mr. Aniekan Udoeyop, the state Commandant of the corps, told reporters that the crackdown was necessary because the actions of the fuel stations and their owners were creating artificial scarcity in the state.
Udoeyop bemoaned that, despite his earlier warning to fuel station owners and operators, some of them were not only stockpiling products but also selling them at prices higher than the N165 pump price.
“For crying out loud, any gas station that is not ready to sell at normal prices should be closed.”
On February 7, I visited fuel stations across the state and advised them to maintain the current pump price per litre and to refrain from stockpiling products to avoid increases in prices.
“However, here we are today, with some stations charging as much as N220 per litre.” This is bad, and it is the height of wickedness for these fuel station owners and operators to take advantage of a minor blunder by the government and punish their fellow humans.
“For those stations that have fuel but are hoarding it, we will ensure that they stay closed, so we are returning to seal them up,” he said.
Udoeyop stated that all those arrested during the crackdown would face the law, and that stations that had been closed would not be reopened until their meters were normalized.
According to reports, some of the stations visited included Mende Gas, Hifly petrol, Elilove oil and Raptor oil; DVD oil, and VOE oil, where fuel was found to be N205 and N220 per liter.
According to agency reports, 12 fuel attendants/managers were also arrested during the exercise.
