From: Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
The people in many parts of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, are currently groaning as a result of scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
Daily Sun’s tour of Ibadan, on Monday, revealed that many filling stations did not dispense the commodity to motorists. Gates of many of the filling stations were under locks, while some opened their gates, but only provided other services such car servicing, wheel-balancing, alignment, sales of wares in their mini supermarkets.
In the few filling stations that were been dispensing the commodity, it was observed that none of them sold the commodity beyond the N145 official pump price. Some stations sold the PMS for N142 and N143.
But some filling stations had been accused of hoarding the commodity. Especially a station at Bashorun that took delivery of the commodity, on Saturday evening, and has not been dispensing it, probably awaiting when the pump price of the PMS would be increased
It was further gathered that transport fares have remained same in many parts of Ibadan. A tour of Sabo in Mokola area also showed that ‘black market’ has not commenced in the place. It is a place where PMS is usually sold in gallons whenever there is fuel scarcity.
The mildly affected areas included Akobo, Eleyele, Ologuneru, Bashorun. While short queues of vehicles were sighted in some fuel stations, motorists were not faced with such challenge in some parts of Ibadan, as they would just drive in, buy the product and leave with ease.
At the NNPC Mega Station, Akobo, near Iwo Road, a queue of about 12 cars was sighted. But each of the motorists did not spend more than 10 minutes before they bought the commodity.
The situation was the same at a filling station at Dandaru, Mokola, where a queue of about 20 cars was also sighted. The situation was not different at Ologuneru and Eleyele, as queues of vehicles at about three fuel stations were not more than 12 each.
Ademola Babalola, a resident of Ologuneru told Daily Sun that only about 30 per cent of the filling stations at Ologuneru and Eleyele dispensed fuel, while others locked their gates.
But at Ebedi in Shasha, Abatakan near Ojoo, Agbowo Express, Cele at Mokola, and Mokola Roundabout, motorists had access to the commodity without any stress.
A resident of Olorunda, near Akobo, in Lagelu Local Government Area, Mr. Abiodun Akinkunle, said he bought fuel at a station in Olorunda with ease because there was no queue at the place.
Two filling stations, owned by major marketers near Oje, the capital city, as gathered, dispensed fuel without queue at the two stations.