The Federal Government on Monday said Nigerians are suffering to buy fuel because the immediate past administration failed to make adequate provision for fuel subsidy.
Addressing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the Buhari administration inherited the vandalisation of the pipelines, which has made it impossible to even transport the fuel.
The minister insisted that the problem had nothing to do with non-availability of the product but distribution, because of pipelines that have been vandalised and the gridlock in Lagos.
He spoke further: “What I will be telling Nigerians is that what we met on ground is such that we are paying for the sins of the last administration.
“I am being very serious.
“You remember that about two weeks ago, we had to go to the National Assembly for a supplementary budget of N674 billion.
“Of that figure, N522 billion was for arrears of fuel subsidy, which was incurred as far back as August last year.
“One of the reasons for the fuel scarcity was the inability of the last government to make
adequate provision for fuel subsidy.
“We do face some other logistic problems, but majorly we are paying for the sins of the last administration.
“The solution is what you have seen us doing.
“The first thing we have done now is to make sure that unlike before when the marketers used to import the major percentage of the fuel, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has been involved in importation because some of the marketers had stopped importing for a couple of months.
“If you see any fuel anywhere today, it is imported by the NNPC.
“We also inherited the vandalisation of the pipelines, which has made it impossible for us to even transport the fuel.
“In tanks today, we have 14 days reserve and off tank, we have 10 days reserve.
“The issue is not non-availability of the product.
“It is the distribution because of pipelines that have been vandalised and the gridlock in Lagos.
“It takes about five days for anybody to take fuel with tanker in Lagos.
“As at two days ago, this matter has being resolved.
The Mosinmi pipeline has been secured and it has led to the improvement in the distribution.”
Fuel scarcity: FG says Nigerians paying for Jonathan’s sins
