Fuel Scarcity Averted As DAPPMA Reverses Directive To Shut Down Depots

Barely twenty-four hours after ordering members to observe shut down of depots across the country, the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA) has withdrawn the directive that threaten fuel supply.
This was contained in a statement issued on Monday by DAPPMA’s Executive Secretary, Olufemi Adewole, in Lagos, which suspended the earlier directive that loading petroleum products should be suspended effective from midnight of Sunday.
DAPPMA gave the initial directive to its members on Sunday owing to growing indebtedness of the federal government to marketers.
Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, led other officials of government to meet with marketers following threats of shutting down operations over debts owed it by the government.
At the end of their meeting, Ahmed allayed fears of fuel scarcity in a tweet shared on the Ministry of Finance handle, saying the government and marketers have agreed to sustain supply of petroleum products and that fuel will be available for the yelutide and new year celebrations.
But that assurance was threatened on Sunday as DAPPMA ordered members to shut down operations across the country.
In a swift reversal of the directive, Adewole said it decided to suspend the Sunday’s directive “following the intervention of well-meaning Nigerians, including the National Assembly as represented by the Senate Committee of Petroleum Downstream and constructive engagement of the Federal Government team by the labour unions most affected by the disengagement of our personnel, namely, PENGASSAN, NUPENG, NARTO, PTD, and DAPPMA.”
“The union has resolved to recall its disengaged personnel for 5-days to give the FG’s team the opportunity to conclude its process of paying marketers the full outstanding of N800 billion with the first trench being the amount already approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
“The association has acted in good faith to avoid unnecessary hardship which could befall Nigerians during the yuletide season and we hope that government would make good of its promise to see that those issues are resolved by Friday, December 14, 2018 as promised.
“To this end, our disengaged personnel would be recalled on Monday, December 10 and considering the reactivation time or hitherto shut down system, all depots with fuel stock should be fully active same day.”
Adewole impressed on the government on need to ensure offsetting the debts owed marketers, noting that this would curtailed the continuing wastage of public funds as interest accruing on the over N800 billion debt.