The Zamfara State chapter of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria says the pump price of petrol was high in the state due to its cost at the private depots supplying them.
The IPMAN chapter Chairman, Alhaji Sirajo Kamba, made the clarification in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Gusau on Sunday.
The association was reacting to the allegations of arbitrary price hike and hoarding made by the Department of Petroleum Resources against its members.
NAN reports that the DPR had on Thursday sealed seven filling stations in the state over alleged arbitrary price increase, hoarding and under-dispensation among others.
The Acting Operations Controller in charge of Kaduna Zonal Office of the department, Alhaji Abdullahi Abawa, who led the operation team, said the department had uncovered various malpractices in petroleum products supply and marketing.
Kamba said that the major cause of the increase in pump price of petrol as against the official price of N145 per liter was the increase in price from the supplying private depot.
Kamba said: “Most of the filling stations selling the commodity beyond government official price are getting it from private depots and these don’t sell the commodity as directed by the Federal Government.
“Even the DPR is aware of the price changes from them.
“As mandated by law, DPR should monitor our business activities; it is also mandated to check the excesses of the private depot.
“We got the product between N139 and N140 per liter from the private depots against N133 as directed by the government and this is the major reason for the hike.
“And you know we cannot run at a loss. We have been calling on the Federal Government to investigate and address these issues.”
According to Kamba as a result of the delay in supplying the commodity from government depot, the independent marketers patronise private depots whose prices are higher than the government’s.
He urged the government to review the current the system of supplying the commodity so as to reduce the cost of the commodity to the end users.
He said that IPMAN as a law abiding association was ever ready to cooperate with the government and other stakeholders to ensure that petroleum supply improved in the country.
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