Motorists are still facing difficult time in Maiduguri, Borno state, as fuel scarcity bites harder with residents buying a four-litre gallon of petrol for as high as N2,500.
Most filling stations in Maiduguri are still under lock with vehicle owners spending most of their day on endless queues at the NNPC mega station, the only place where fuel is sold at the official pump price.
Few of the fillings stations being operated by independent marketers only sell their products at hiked prices of N250 per litre mostly in the late evening hours.
Yahaya Garba, a mechanic said the situation is fast telling on residents’ everyday activities.
“I can’t not drive my car to a far distance now due to lack of affordable fuel”, he lamented.
“In the morning I was lucky to buy half of a gallon at the cost of N700 just to drive my car from home to the workshop. And by this (Tuesday) evening when I am about to drive home, I have to buy two litres at N750 from the same black market. But I was just lucky, so many people have bought a gallon for N2,500 in some other locations of Maiduguri.
“The queues at the Mega station is endless. Some of our colleagues spend half of the day on the queue two days back only to be told that the fuel has finished.”
The situation in Bauchi and Yobe states is not much better, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.
Though residents spend fewer hours on the queue at the Mega station and others owned by major independent marketers, to get fuel at the product at official pump, the black marketers still make brisk business.
In Damaturu, Yobe state capital, a gallon of 4 litres goes for N1,200.
Joel Duku, a media practitioner said “the fuel situation is still not good here in Damaturu; it is either you are lucky to buy at the NNPC mega station at the official rate of N143 per litre or you contend with what the black marketers sell for you.
“I just bought a gallon of petrol for generator at the rate of N1, 200, which means they are selling a litre at N300,” said Mr Duku.
