It looks like Nigerians may experience recurring fuel shortages this Christmas through the New Year as Nigeria’s oil marketers have insisted on going on nationwide strike over Nigeria’s oil subsidy debts, which would likely cost the government about N800 billion or $2.2 billion.
Per Second News had earlier reported that the oil marketers had reached an agreement with the Nigerian government to suspend the threatened strike, but less than 48 hours after that report, Depot and Petroleum Marketers Association (DAPPMAN), is denying reaching any agreement with the government.
The group’s executive secretary, Olufemi Adewole, said in a written statement that: “There was no agreement reached because offers by the government failed to meet the legitimate demands of the association. Our ultimatum stands.”
It will be recalled that the oil marketers, comprising of DAPPMAN, Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) had met with Nigerian government agencies on Thursday to reach an agreement that could potentially avert the strike action, but group said they hadn’t reached an agreement with the government despite information from Nigeria’s ministry of finance saying otherwise.
“DAPPMAN reiterates that there was no agreement reached because offers by Government failed to meet the legitimate demands of the Association and we did not sign the purported document hence our ultimatum stands as we cannot continue to borrow from banks to pay staff salaries.
DAPPMAN’s demands made to the FG through the HMOF and DMO was to pay in cash, the total sum of indebtedness to marketers within the time frame expressed in communications with these Government Ministry and Office to enable us continue in business; pay our staff and not rely on facilities from Banks; which are no longer forthcoming,” he said in the statement.
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