FG to pay oil marketers N413bn subsidy debts

 

The Federal Government, yesterday, approved the payment of N413 billion to petroleum products marketers being the outstanding payment for subsidy claims‎, even as marketers insist they are owed about N470billion.
The development comes as the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, which is responsible for approving such claims revealed that it was yet to be notified of the payment.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, in a statement in Abuja, also said it has injected additional volumes of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS‎, or petrol across the country to boost supply of the product and eliminate the long queues that have resurfaced in many parts of the country.
The statement, signed by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division‎, NNPC, Mr. Ohi Alegbe, noted that the payment of the outstanding N413 billion subsidy claims to oil marketers is part of the Government’s initiative of zero tolerance to fuel queues nationwide.

A top management source at the PPPRA, who spoke with Vanguard on the telephone, said the Agency is not aware that approvals had been given for the payment of N413 billion to marketers.
He however admitted, “Although we have made recommendations on what to be paid to the Ministry of Finance, but have not yet got any feedback,” without giving more details into how much was recommended for payment.
When asked to justify whether oil marketers were truly owed N470 billion, as exclusively reported by Vanguard yesterday, the source said: “Marketers are entitled to their own opinion, just as we are entitled to our own based on the claim papers we have processed.
 Director of the DPR, Mordecai Ladan, had in a statement in Abuja, warned oil marketers against products diversion, hoarding, pump manipulation and selling products above government approved prices.