DPR seals off 12 filling stations in Maiduguri over fuel price hike

THE Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has sealed off 12 filling stations in Maiduguri metropolis, the Borno State capital, for selling Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol above the official pump price of N87 per litre.

The sealing off of the filling stations came as scarcity of the product bites harder in the state capital with transportation fares shooting up as high as 100 per cent, thereby forcing some residents to trek some kilometres to their offices, schools and markets.

The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the DPR, Mr. Waziri Wadai, who disclosed this yesterday while briefing newsmen on the scarcity of petrol in the metropolis in his Maiduguri office, said that officers and men of DPR have been going round Maiduguri metropolis to closely monitor the strict compliance to approved prices for the sale of petroleum products by both major and independent marketers in Borno and Yobe states.

His words: “Our monitoring field officers in the city however discovered that some filling stations were still engaged in unwholesome acts of selling above pump price of N87 per litre of petrol.

“So far, the department has sealed off 12 stations between Monday and Tuesday. We’re still going round to monitor the situation and I can assure you that we won’t allow this unpatriotic act to continue.”

He also said that operators of the sealed filling stations have been directed to pay the appropriate fine/penalty as defaulters to the official pump price of N87 per litre.

He said some have started complying by paying the fine into designated government bank accounts after which they will bring receipts of their payment to the DPR office for confirmation and reopening of their sealed stations.