IPMAN demands suspension of new N123.5 pump price
Following another downward review in the pump price of petrol by the Buhari administration , the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has appealed to the federal government to stay action before its implementation.
The IPMAN South West Zonal Chairman, Alhaji Dele Tajudeen, in a press statement issued on Wednesday in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, said the plea has become necessary in order to allow its members exhaust selling petroleum products in their stock before the commencemet of the new price regime.
Tajudeen in the statement berated the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for announcing a further reduction in the pump price of petrol without adequate consideration of the welfare of IPMAN members, most of whom he said run their businesses through bank loans.
The IPMAN zonal chairman further stated that the entire south-west IPMAN executive committee has resolved and directed that members of the association should continue to dispense petroleum products to customers at the existing pump price of N125 before the announcement of the new price regime of N123. 5 as announced by the NNPC.
His words: “It is very disheartening to hear that a new price regime is coming to effect without considering the plight of marketers who bought these products at an expensive price.
“We want to categorically state here that the last time when federal government cut off a whole N20 from the pump price, all of us incurred greater debts.
“And the federal government needs to know that some of us obtained loans from banks to run this business and we have to pay interest on them.
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“We are still struggling with debts incurred not up to a month ago before another price reduction.
“We however, want to plead with the federal government to please understand with us so that majority of the marketers may not be sent away from business.”
Tajudeen also said that his association identifies with the federal government at this critical period of national disaster and prays that God quickly intervenes to save the country.
