To an observer, it would seem that the NNPC mega station along Argungu Road,? Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State has been taken over by shylock kerosene dealers.
Kebbi State, like any other in the country, is supplied with the commodity for the benefit of the people, but it does not get to them, as people continue to suffer for it because dealers come from different locations, including the neighbouring Sokoto State, to load trucks to Niger Republic.?
Our reporter’s findings revealed that whenever the product was brought to the NNPC mega station in Birnin Kebbi, the officials always connived with these dealers to sell the product at a higher price? than the official N50 per litre tag, which, according to them, “is more profitable than selling to the consumers”. Imagine a litre of kerosene selling for between N150 and N180 in black markets.
A source close to one of the dealers revealed to this reporter that when the trucks were loaded, instead of being supplied directly to the people, it is spirited through Sokoto to Illela, into Niger Republic where they make more profit.???
Last Monday, a resident, Sunday Aliyu, informed this reporter while he waited for kerosene, that: “Today is my second day? here, though all I want to get is just 10 litres of? kerosene. But as I am talking to you, I have no hope of getting the kerosene. The funny thing is, while I was here, about four trucks were loaded with the 30-litre jerry cans, despite the presence of the security men deployed to the station.”? He branded one of the managers of the station responsible for overseeing kerosene sales, Oga Kabiru , as “the wicked man who always instructs the attendants to concentrate on their business associates, instead of selling to consumers who do not buy in large quantities, because they do not gain anything from us.”
A septuagenarian, Malam Yahaya Attahiru, could not disguise his disdain for and dissatifaction with the way and manner in which the kerosene was being sold at the station, and called on the authorities concerned to “please, find out what is happening and punish anyone caught in connection with this bad habit, as the country is now on the move to fight corruption. We are hoping that the bad eggs will be flushed out of the system,” he said.
One of the dealers, Malam Sani liman, told this reporter that: “People have been accusing us of dominating the mode of the distribution of kerosene by the NNPC for long. I have to tell the world that? the allegation is not true, and that the reason they concentrate on us is this: whether the kerosene is available or not, we do associate with these other bulk dealers. For the normal customers, they only show up when the product has been supplied. I also want to clearify this: we do not smuggle the product. Rather, we take it to places like Yauri, Zuru, Kamba and other areas where we can make more profit. What is wrong with that?” he queried.