The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Eket Office, on Monday gave petrol marketers in Akwa Ibom, three days to revert to N87 pump price or face sanctions.
The DPR Operations Controller in the state, Mr Asuquo Antai, said in an interview in Uyo, that there was no reason for the hike in pump price by the marketers.
Antai said three million litres of petrol was supplied to the state last week, as such there was no excuse for the current scarcity of the product.
He warned that the department would seal any petrol station for three months if found selling the product above the official price.
“From Thursday Nov. 5, no retail outlet should sell above government approved price of N87 per litre.
“Any filling station that sells above the price will be shut for three months and defaulters will have to pay fine before being reopened for business.
“Any retail outlet that cannot sell for N87 per litre should close because we are going to monitor them strictly to ensure compliance”, Antai said.
He lamented that some major marketers, including operators of NNPC mega stations, also divert the product allocated to them for higher gain.
The controller also warned depot managers collaborating with some marketers to shortchange Nigerians, to stop forthwith or regret their action.
Antai assured that the Calabar depot has reasonable quantity of petrol to meet the requirement of the state, as such there was no need for diversion or panic buying.
The state has being experiencing fuel scarcity for the last two weeks, with the product being sold at between N100 and N120 per litre. (NAN)