The cost of transportation is on the increase across the country following the hike in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, in fillings stations in states.
Motorists still besieged the few filling stations that dispensed PMS in Abuja and neighboring Nasarawa and Niger states on Tuesday, as many outlets in Nasarawa and other states sold the commodity at N200/liter and above.
This was in contrast to the Federal Government’s approved pump price of N162-N165/liter. In Abuja, black marketers freely sold petrol at N400/liter and above.
The National Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, told one of our correspondents that the price of petrol in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, was above N200/liter in filling stations.
“The queues in Port Harcourt are clearing out and filling stations sell at N200 and above for a liter of petrol,” he said.
In Ilorin, Kwara State, the transportation situation grew worse on Tuesday, as petrol scarcity continued.
Many petrol stations locked their gates, as only a few outlets, such as Bovas and the NNPC dispensed petrol to motorists at the approved price of N162/liter amidst long queues.
Findings showed that fuel was being sold at between N350 to N500/liter in some independent petrol stations.
As a result of the fuel scarcity, transport fares increased by more than 300 percent for both inter and intra-city transport.
In the Ilorin metropolis, commercial vehicles charged between N150 and N300 for short-distance trips, instead of the N50 that was previously charged.
Inter-city fares from Ilorin to Offa and Omu-Aran rose to between N800 to N1,500, instead of N300 and N800 as was previously charged.
In Ondo State, fuel was sold for N200 per liter at the black market level which thrived better late in the evening or at midnight.
During visits to some of the filling stations in Akure, the state capital, it was observed that the stations that dispensed petrol during the day, sold the commodity at the approved N165/liter price.
Meanwhile, the queues persisted in many filling stations as the scarcity of petrol continued on Tuesday.
In Enugu State, fuel was sold in a few stations owned by independent marketers between N200 and N220/liter, while major marketers sold the product for N165 and N189/liter.
One of our correspondents, who monitored the development in Enugu State metropolis, reported that only North-West and Mobil dispensed the product to motorists on Tuesday.
