Commercial motorcycle and tricycle operators in Kaduna have lamented the petrol price hike and scarcity.

Some Okada riders bore their minds in separate interviews on Friday in Kaduna.

Checks revealed a high volume of passengers going to work and their business premises stranded due to the metropolis’s fuel scarcity.

Also, only a handful of commercial motorcyclists were seen plying the major streets, as several filling stations were not dispensing fuel.

Yunusa Abdullah, a commercial motorcyclist, said that a few filling stations with the product hiked the pump price to N750 and N810 per litre, as opposed to N620, a few days ago.

“Some of the stations have deliberately closed down in the guise of unavailability of product. The situation has forced some of us to park our tricycles (Keke) at home until everything normalises,” he said.

Another operator, Sunday Njokwu, said that following the hike in transport fares, passengers have to pay twice the amount they were paying to get to their destinations.

“It is not our fault because some of those who cannot afford to 1ueue at the filling stations buy fuel for as much as N1100 per litre. As it is, the government would have to intervene as quickly as possible so that the situation doesn’t get out of hand,” Mr Njokwu urged.

Allah-Magani Isa, another ‘Keke’ operator, said the scarcity and high cost of fuel had affected his daily return.

He added, “I find it difficult to meet the remittance to the owner. I have to force myself to work extra hours to make ends meet and provide for my family.”

A resident, Mohammed Amin, said he bought half a gallon of fuel, which is two litres, for N2,200. He said he was considering dropping his vehicle and opting for commercial means of transportation if the problem persisted.

Abel Musa, a resident of Narayi, urged the authorities concerned to take immediate measures to alleviate the suffering of the masses.

“You can literally see commuters trekking under the scorching sun to either their work or business places, unfortunately, due to the high cost of transport,” Mr Musa said.

(NAN)