14th June, 2015
Residents of Calabar, Cross River, have lamented the high cost of kerosene in the state capital and appealed to relevant authorities to do address the problem.
The residents, who made the call in separate interviews with NAN in Calabar, said the products were being sold above controlled price.
They also said the price was beyond the reach of common people in the area.
They claimed that marketers sell the product at N130 per litre in parts of the city against the government’s approved price of N50 per litre of kerosene.
Mrs Emem Effiong, a Restaurant Operator, told NAN that the N130 per litre price has almost become the ruling price across board over time.
“You can only buy N50 per litre in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) filling station but how many times do they have kerosene and how many people are ready to queue all day.
“We have been buying for N130 per litre to make things easier,” she said.
Effiong stressed the need for relevant authorities to tackle the situation, adding that kerosene was so important to the masses, especially the poorest of the poor.
Another resident, Mr Idegu Michael, said kerosene marketers were deliberately exploiting the people.
He noted that the commodity was very indispensable to the public such that government at all levels should show more commitment and concern in order to reduce the burden on the very poor and down trodden.
“Kerosene is so important to the people that all relevant authorities concerned must ensure the product is not only available but also affordable,” he said.
However, he noted the availability of the product in virtually all the petrol stations in the area, but for the high cost.
Reacting to the development, a filling station attendant at Nthey’d, Mr Emmanuel Ojong, told NAN that they had no kerosene to dispense, but assured that whenever there was stock the station sold at N50 per litre.
Meanwhile, an attendant for one of the independent marketers, Miss Rose Daniel, confirmed that she was directed to sell the product at N130 per litre whenever they received supply.