Fuel Scarcity Pressure Intensity Increases In Owerri As Fuel Station Remain On Protest

On Saturday, long lines resurfaced at many filling stations in Owerri, the state capital of Imo.

There were instances when some filling stations were charging between N250 and N300 per litre of gasoline.

After visiting a number of petrol stations in the area, a DAILY POST reporter discovered that they were all locked up.

Transportation from Akwakuma to Ware House intersection, which was formerly N50 per person per trip, is now priced at N150, while transportation from the World Bank to Control junction, which was previously priced at N50, is now priced at N150.

Emeka Opara, a motorist, expressed his dissatisfaction with the situation and urged the administration to find a long-term solution to the problem of gasoline scarcity.

“The government should find a lasting solution to this particular issue because we can’t keep on going this way every time,’’ she remarked emphatically.

Motorists waited in line to purchase fuel at the NNPC filling station on Onitsha Road and a few other locations.

Residents of the state have endured a great deal of suffering as a result of the scarcity.

At Amakohia, the same situation played out, with most petrol stations closed down and the ones that were open charging as much as N300 per litre for their petrol.

An employee at the Mobile filling station on Egbu Road revealed that some of the filling stations had the goods on hand but had been advised not to sell them due to government regulations.

According to him, “Though some of us do not have, others prefer to sell to black marketers since they would make more profit.”

Remember that filling stations in Owerri had earlier shut down their operations in protest against the reluctance of the state government to compensate one of their members whose filling station had been damaged by the previous administration of former Governor Rochas Okorocha.

Based on a court decision they obtained, they brought this case against the state government, claiming that it owed compensation to its member. The state government, on the other hand, has stated that it will appeal the decision.