Urging the Federal Government to revive the long-abandoned Aba petroleum depot, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Aba Chapter has issued a call to action.
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On Wednesday, while hosting officials from the National Orientation Agency (NOA) on a public sensitisation visit, Oliver Emeka Okolo, chairman of the IPMAN Aba Depot, made the call in Aba.
The protracted closure of the Aba petroleum depot has worsened unemployment, increased crime, and interrupted fuel distribution across the five states in the southeastern region of Nigeria, according to Okolo, who stressed the critical importance of swift justice and the restoration of infrastructure.
When the Aba terminal sits empty, it affects more than just the economy; it has social repercussions as well, including increased crime, youth unemployment, and regional instability, according to Okolo.
Poor pipeline connectivity, he claims, has resulted in an ongoing shortage of gasoline, which has severely impacted operations, especially for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and dual-purpose kerosene (DPK).
He was sorry that marketers had no choice but to get their products from the South-West and South-South regions, where the roads are so dangerous that tankers are sometimes damaged and businesses lose a lot of money.
“This goes beyond fuel,” Okolo stated. An entire region has been driven to the fringes due to systematic neglect, which includes financial, infrastructural, and regulatory neglect. Pumping into Aba can only resume with intervention from the president. If we do not act soon, the damage will only get worse.
In addition, the IPMAN chairman assured the NOA of the association’s commitment to working together to foster national unity.
Responding, Victor Orji, Director of NOA, Abia State, praised IPMAN for continuing fuel distribution despite bad weather and described NOA’s current national campaign, “Pathway to National Cohesion, Development and Unity.”.
He appealed to petroleum marketers for help and emphasised that the campaign will be addressing insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, and herder-farmer conflicts.