DPR Seals Filling Stations Within Residential Area In Lafia, Nasarawa State
BY BABA AHMED, LAFIA – The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), on Thursday sealed up five filling stations located within residential areas in Lafia, the Nasarawa state capital.
Confirming the closure, the state Operations Controller of DPR, Abdulrahman Mohammed said that the five filling Stations within residential areas are among the 20 filling stations sealed between February and April this year.
Abdulrahman said that the agency has modified ways of checking illegalities and ensure that products are sold at official rate.
He said that the DPR has mapped out strategies to ensure the filling stations that do not conform to safety standards are closed down and their license revoked.
Commenting on the re-appearance of people buying petrol in jerry cans, the DPR controller explained that those buying might fall in the classes of saloon operators or other domestic users.
He said that the state receives about 30 trucks every day while allaying fears of scarcity of the product.
According to him; “We have enough supply to go round every day because we receive about 30 thousand trucks every day across the state.”
He cautioned people against panic buying, adding that the agency will continue to ensure availability of the product across the state.
The Chairman of Petrol Tankers Drivers in Lafia Local Government Area, Mr. Awaje Danladi also allay fears of any planned increase in the pump price of petroleum product.
Awaje said that the union always ensures that way bill of every tanker carries the official price in its ticket before passing through the state or off-loading petroleum product.
Our correspondent, who went round the sealed filling Stations, observed that they have their underground left on the surface within residential areas.
The affected filling stations are situated around Shinge cattle market, Command Secondary School and close to NYSC State secretariat all in Lafia.
Further checks revealed that most areas in Lafia, are harbored by black marketers in the streets.
A residence of Lafia town, Mallam Ali Ibrahim, said that most youths took to black marketing as a voluntary job.
