Day/night loading of fuel ongoing at all depots nationwide after meeting with VP
…40 mega vessels berth with products, more on high sea
After a meeting with the major oil marketers on Christmas morning, the Vice President has tweeted, saying “Within the next few days, we expect the fuel queues to be eliminated. We will continue to engage the marketers so this sad episode is not repeated”.
Though he failed to give details of the meeting while address journalists in a tweeted video that has gone viral alongside the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachukwu, the South-West Chairman of Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Mr Tayo Aboyeji three hours after the meeting confirmed in a telephone interview that “massive loading of petrol was ongoing at different depots in Lagos and other parts of the country”.
Besides, Shipping Position, the official source of shipping data at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has revealed about 40 ships loaded with products are berthing even as more are coming on high sea.
Aboyeji, who made the confirmation in an interview in Lagos, assured Nigerians that the current scarcity of fuel would end in the next two days.
He said “I am glad to tell you that the product is now available and today, being Christmas holiday, tanker drivers are waiting to collect the product.
“Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is now making use of Major Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) tank farms to distribute petrol.
“This is to accelerate the product to different locations. As I am talking to you, our members are taking the product out of depots to filling stations across the country.
“To make it quicker, NNPC is also using Folawiyo depot, Aiteo and NIPCO depots and I can tell you that the rate at which loading is taking place now, the crisis will soon be over,” he said.
Atoyebi denied allegation of diversion of the product by his members, adding that such had not been reported to him.
“To the best of my knowledge no such cases have been reported to the union.
“It is not easy to divert the product because petroleum tankers loaded were being monitored to their destinations,” he said.
