Petrol scarcity has crippled socioeconomic activities in Kano and its environs, with residents wasting many man-hours looking for fuel. The situation has forced motorists to abandon their routine schedules to search for petrol at filling stations.

The development also reflects the city’s socioeconomic status, as many residents have closed their business premises while others have suspended their planned visits to friends and relatives.

Most of the streets in the metropolis have been deserted, while many motorists have abandoned their cars due to fuel scarcity.

Some residents were forced to trek long distances to reach their various destinations because few commercial vehicles were on the roads.

It was also observed that secondary and tertiary institution students have resorted to trekking due to the shortage of commercial vehicles on the roads.

Black market petrol vendors have capitalised on the situation to sell a gallon of fuel at N6,000.

Abubakar Shehu of Dorayi quarters said he spent 11 hours in a queue at a filling station to buy fuel.

Mr Shehu decried the situation and called on the federal government and other stakeholders to urgently address the problem.

A civil servant, Isa Musa, said he had to take a taxi to the office after spending almost two hours at the bus stop.

“Public buses became so scarce this morning, and I just ordered a ride to take me to my office at an exorbitant cost. I would have turned back to go home, but I have a very important meeting to attend, and it was almost time for the meeting,” Mr Musa said.

Another civil servant, who gave his name as Rakiya Musa, said, “The federal government should declare a state of emergency on the current scarcity of petroleum products, saying it has crippled socioeconomic activities across the country. Transportation fares have gone up within days of this fuel scarcity. How do they want us to survive.”

Abdulmuni Isa, a commercial vehicle operator, said, “Increasing the transportation fare is the only way out for us transporters because to get fuel these days is not easy.

“You will notice that most filling stations in Kano are now out of stock, leaving long queues of vehicles stretching into distances in some NNPC stations.”

When contacted, the chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Kano chapter, Gana Girigire, blamed the NNPCL for the petrol scarcity.

“It is not our fault. We have sent over 100 trucks to various centres where we buy this commodity, but it is not available,” Mr Girigire said. 

(NAN)