New Kerosene pump price: IPMAN wants more licences to marketers

The president, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Chinedu Okoronkwo, has urged the Federal Government to give more licences to marketers to ensure availability of Household Kerosene (HHK) in the country.

Mr. Okoronkwo gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said the new N83 pump price for kerosene was a good development in the right direction.

The Petroleum Products Pricing Agency (PPPRA) on Sunday increased the price of kerosene from N50 to N83.

The PPPRA said the increase was in line with the price modulation announced by the minister of state for petroleum, Ibeh Kachikwu.

“The truth is that this government is showing a level of sincerity; we now know how much the product is bought and how much it should be sold.

“IPMAN has seen a level of sincerity and so, we commend the effort,’’ he said.

Mr. Okoronkwo, however, stressed the need for government to ensure availability of the products to the benefit of the consumers.

He called on the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to issue more licences to marketers to enable them to import and circulate the product.
He said the government should issue licences to encourage people build mini refineries.

According to him, this would go a long way to improving on the nation’s economy and bringing about development in the oil and gas sector.

Meanwhile, mixed reactions have trailed the new pump price for kerosene.

Some consumers, who spoke to NAN, said it was a good development while others said it would cause more hardship on the poor masses.

Agnes Idema, a trader, said that kerosene was being sold at N120 even when the official pump price was N50, expressing fears that it would go higher.

“Right now I buy kerosene at N120 per litre, from sellers who spend days at NNPC fuel stations to get the product for N50. “I hope it will not make it more expensive,’’ she lamented.

Mrs. Idema called on the government to ensure the availability of the products so that people can buy at the official price from all fuel stations.

Martins Chukwu, a civil servant, said the plan by government to modulate the price of Kerosene was commendable.

“I think what government has done is to remove subsidy paid on HHK; this will save some money for the government,” he said.

Amina Yusuf, a widow, said “if the price is N83 and I find it to buy, that will be very good.

“Right now, I use saw dust to cook; it is cheaper for me because I cannot afford to buy kerosene,’’ she said.

She called on the government to ensure that its policy did not infringe more suffering on ordinary Nigerians. (NAN)