All the stakeholders, including Major Oil Marketers Association of
Nigeria (MOMAN), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Depot and Petroleum
Products Marketing Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), Petroleum Products
Pricing Regulatory Agency ( PPPRA), Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation ( NNPC) and Pipelines Products Marketing Company (PPMC),
among others assured yesterday that the scarcity of the product will end
in a few days.
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who briefed journalists in Abuja yesterday after a
meeting with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Petroleum Products
Pricing Regulatory Agency ( PPPRA), oil marketers and depot owners, said
the Federal Government has addressed all contentious issues with the
marketers, including the issue of foreign exchange rate differentials.
The federal government, she said, had accepted to pay the $30 billion
exchange rate differentials owed the marketers over the last couple of
months and is already on the verge defraying the N185 billion debt owed
the marketers with the issuance of Sovereign Debt Notes (SDNs).
The minister, who reaffirmed that the federal government has been
dialoguing with the marketers within the last ten days, said President
Goodluck Jonathan wanted Nigerians to know that efforts were being
vigorously put in place to resolve the issue in the shortest possible
time.
Okonjo-Iweala enjoined the marketers to be patriotic in their dealings
with the government as the issue affects everyone, commended Nigerians
for their patience.
While assuring that the crisis will be over in the next few days, the
minister, the long “queues will dissipate, the situation will be
addressed and everything will return to normal.”
“At the Federal Executive Council meeting today(Wednesday), the issue
was discussed in terms of pushing forward and making sure things get
back to normal,” she said.
The CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, who also spoke at the briefing,
said the apex bank had met with banks and oil marketers to resolve all
the contentious issues associated with credit facilities, adding that in
the last one week, ,over $500 million Letters of Credit (LCs) had been
opened by banks on behalf of the marketers.
Emefiele requested any marketer who is experiencing delays in their LCs
to alert the CBN, and promised to respond promptly to ensure the issue
is resolved amicably.
Speaking on behalf of the oil marketers, the Executive Secretary, Major
Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Mr. Obafemi Olawore,
assured that the queues will ease off in the next few days, as the
marketers had already moved 495 truckloads of fuel to Lagos, Abuja and
environs.
Massive movement of fuel-conveying trucks, he said, was already on
since the last three days, while three of its members had imported three
cargoes of PMS following agreements with the CBN and the Finance
Ministry.
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