Some frustrated Nigerians stormed Abuja on Monday in protest over the lingering fuel scarcity.
The protest led by the Coalition of Concerned Civil Society Organizations of Nigeria took place at the Unity Fountain.
It was intended to push the federal government to act in response to the scarcity.
Convener of the group, Comrade Aminu Abbas at the rally blamed the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) for the unfortunate development.
Some of the inscriptions on the placards read: “We are tired of hearing stories about our refineries”, “We want accountability in the affairs of NNPCL”.
The coalition decried the state of disrepair of the refineries.
It alleged sabotage of local refineries, claiming that the situation has gone from bad to worse, with no end in sight.
“Why do we, the people, have to endure endless queues, inflated prices, and the daily uncertainty of whether we can fuel our vehicles or power our homes? The answer lies in the gross incompetence and mismanagement.
The protest comes on the heels of fears that the end may not be in sight for scarcity of petroleum products especially the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise called petrol, as the NNPC Limited, has admitted owing its petrol suppliers a substantial amount.
NNPC made the disclosure on Sunday in a release by its Chief Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye.
It was gathered that the debt that has risen to $6 billion has seen suppliers reduce the volume given to the Nigerian national oil company. The short in supply has led to a six-week long petrol scarcity across the country.
Soneye, in the statement, said the debt has posed a significant financial strain on NNPC operations.
The Abuja protest is taking place barely three weeks after youths in the country took to the streets in protest over hunger and high cost of living. The organisers of the protest have fixed October for another phase of the exercise.
