The Federal Government has accused the rising cost of petrol on the rush by petroleum marketers to make illicit profits from the hardship of Nigerians.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, who stated this to State House Correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, also lamented the hardship the situation had forced on the populace.
Reports from different parts of the country indicated that most fuel stations sell above the approved pump price of N185 rather than selling between N200 and N650 while many others reportedly hoard the product.
However, the Minister has vowed to repeat an earlier directive to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to go after marketers profiteering with the current situation and sanction them.
He said the government was not just folding its arms while Nigerians suffer, assuring all stakeholders in the downstream sector were working to ensure the current crisis is brought under control.
“We have reports of profiteering by marketers, and I’ve directed NMDPRA to sanction anybody who profiteers in this kind of situation. I mean, we cannot stand by and watch our citizens being exploited by marketers.
“But of course, I’ve given that directive and I don’t know if it has not taken effect. I don’t know the details of how far that directive has been carried out. But I’m going to still further give that directive if that is still the situation, but definitely, we are not paying a blind eye at all”, he said.
