You may be distressed with this post. But the truth remains, signs in the downstream are cloudily dark and ominous. Nigeria is not alone on this because prices of gasoline globally is witnessing astronomical increases like never before. But our own situation will be worse and more painful for so many reasons. So, brace up, plan well and seek alternative sources of income now.
Crude oil price is about $105/barrel. Naira/Dollar is running northwards. Getting Nigeria’s crude overseas for refining to import back finished products will take a longer period because of the Euro-Russia-Ukraine war. Our mago-mago and thirst for cut-throat profits is not helping matters. Dangote refinery is not yet on stream and those of the nation are not producing.
Sadly, the small filling station owners that dot the nooks and cranies of the country get fuel from the ‘bigger guys’ at N180-N200/L. How would they survive this pustch?
Instead of ‘The Commission’ and Nigerians carrying out oversights from the storage depots and the intermediary chains, they are more concerned with the filling stations that are also victims.
I am not a prophet of doom but I foresee that with time, these smaller guys are likely to disappear and compound unemployment rates in the country. We might also see only the big players in major cities survive.
Without home brewed products, this fuel scarcity might not go away soon. Even if it abates, it might not be the last for Nigeria. Nigerians should not also think that the price of fuel shall come back to the pre-scarcity level. Do we ever need to go through this again? No. Time has come to do things differently.
My heart is heavy because inflation will skyrocket, transportation costs will be excruciatingly high, more people might drive down the poverty lane, etc.
Without any social safety nets for the masses, I am afraid, it looks an unlimited suffering for a whole night. When the joy shall come I do not know.
In the above circumstances, the Hotel D Jordan of old would have asked, where we de go?
Grace and peace!!!
