Ghana smokes out petroleum products racketeering ring made up of locals, foreigners
The Ghanaian Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST) have swooped on a deadly black marketing cartel specialising in sabotaging the country’s nascent oil and gas industry.
The agency said some Ghanaians and foreigners collude to milk the economy dry.
In a statement, BOST said considering the fact that the activities of the saboteurs’ are inimical to the economy; it has therefore pitched its operations to topple the activities of the unscrupulous and irresponsible black market dealers, who over the years had manipulated the downstream sector, which accounted for the high fuel prices.
BOST Senior Staff Union Secretary, Mr. Ekoy Sey said “Government cannot leave such a sensitive national issue wholly in the hands of a few private men who have formed a league to exploit the state”.
Addressing newsmen in Accra, Sey averred that BOST has established a national interest operational relationship with Ghana Oil Company Limited (GOIL) the nation’s foremost indigenous Oil Marketing Company (OMC) and GO Energy a subsidiary of GOIL operating in the Bulk Distributing stream to protect Ghana from the exploitation of the black market dealers.
The BOST Union expressed dissatisfaction that fuel prices at the pump was about GH¢4.51 per litre on the average, which was about GH¢20.30 per gallon “we have the capacity with appropriate governmental support to bring the price down and maintain it at a lower price level for long period through the trading arrangement existing between BOST, GO Energy and GOIL.
“If the situation is not arrested the prices of fuel will continue to go up again, especially in the next pricing window, thereby rendering the tax reduction granted ineffective, which would have a multiple effect on the Ghanaian economy.
Business Hilights Ghana Bureau chief quoted Sey as saying that “Government must support BOST to take control of the petroleum sector to make life easy for Ghanaians”.
BOST chief scribe also appealed to the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Ghana BoG) to waive the single obligor limit on the line of credit to BOST for petroleum product importation.
He noted that time has come for everybody to join hands in the fight against corruption in the downstream oil sector to save Ghana.
He stressed that “High petroleum prices affect everyone be it New Patriotic Party, National Democratic Congress, Convention Peoples’ Party among others. The bottom line is that every Ghanaian is affected by the high petroleum prices. We must all support BOST to bring petroleum prices down to ease the pressure on ordinary citizen”.
He further called for government support in the efforts of BOST to stabilise petroleum prices in the country.
