The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has said that the present scarcity and price hike of Premium Motor Spirits (PMS) in the nation has no justification.
In a statement issued on Monday, PENGASSAN President Festus Osifo and Secretary General Lumumba Okugbawa expressed concern for the hardships that Nigerians were experiencing as a result of shortages and price increases.
According to the statement, statistics made accessible to the union revealed that the country had more than 30 days of PMS sufficiency.
“We understand that the parameters imputed into the old Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency and now Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) template have since changed.
“This is because of some economic vagaries such as exchange rate fluctuation, vessel hiring cost and cost of AGO among others.
“However, there is no sufficient justification for petrol to be selling for such a highly inflated price, thereby subjecting the masses to further difficulties,“ the duo said.
The pair requested NMDPRA management to require all marketers and retailers to sell the items at the permitted pricing.
Both leaders also urged management to promptly mobilize all of its workers around the country to monitor compliance. To serve as a deterrence, the leaders asked management to withdraw the licenses of any marketer who did not comply.
“Should this collusion go unchecked, we will not hesitate to partner with other stakeholders in ensuring that Nigerians are not further exploited, “the leaders said.
