Owerri residents lament as fuel price soars to N1000 per litre

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3 weeks ago

August 29, 2024

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Residents of Owerri, the capital city of Imo State, have lamented the continuous rise in the pump price of premium motor spirit as the price of the product continues to skyrocket daily.

Residents were seen trekking to work as commercial bus drivers, especially Keke bus drivers, temporarily halted their services within the metropolis in protest over the continuous rise in the price of fuel in the country.

The development came on the heels of the further hike in fuel prices in parts of the state from N850 to between N900 and N1000 per litre as of Monday this week.

People were seen in the rush hours of yesterday morning trekking to work in their numbers along some of the popular roads in the metropolis, as only a few commercial buses were seen plying the road.

This was the case along the busy Owerri-Okigwe Road and Wetheral Road, among others.

DAILY POST learnt that the high price of fuel compelled commercial bus drivers to further hike fares for various destinations in the city of Owerri and parts of the state.

Some residents who spoke with DAILY POST revealed that the hardship caused by the hike in fuel pump price is affecting every sector in the state.

Chinedu Ofoha, a bus driver, said that they don’t feel happy increasing the price of transportation but that it became inevitable due to the increase in the price of petroleum products.

“It became worrisome when the fuel price started rising on a daily basis. Some filling stations are selling between N850 and N900 and some are selling at the price of N1000. Still when you go to some of the stations,

they will tell you that they are not selling,” he lamented.

DAILY POST learnt that it is only NNPC filling stations that are selling at N600 per litre. As a result, there are always long queues of motorists at every NNPC station.

“Sometimes we sleep at the station to be the first person to attend to when they reopen the next day,” Ofoha further said.

A fruit seller at World Bank Market, Rosemary Emenike, said that fruit sellers are experiencing low patronage from buyers because of the changes in their prices as a result of the increase in transport fares.

“When we go to the rural markets to purchase the fruits, conveying them to town becomes a problem as drivers charge us beyond what we can afford. When you ask why, they will tell you, are you not in the country? So for us to meet up, we increase the prices of the fruits,” she said.

DAILY POST recalls that fuel price has risen astronomically since President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of subsidy on fuel on May 29, 2023, during his inaugural speech as president.

Many Nigerians have blamed the persistent rise in fuel price and high cost of goods and services in the country on the president’s hasty removal of subsidy on fuel, given the country’s dependence on imported fuel.

The reason why the EFCC rejected the method by which Yahaya Bello reported to the commission.

Published

12 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Ekwutos Blog

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“Upon realising that Bello came with the governor and some dignitaries, the Executive Chairman directed that no official should attend to him.

“His manner of coming to EFCC was a breach of our protocol. No Nigerian, no matter how highly placed, is expected to come for an invitation in a convoy of vehicles and with a sitting governor.

“To the EFCC, he came with grandeur which is contrary to our procedures.

“There are stages of documentation which Bello skipped because he was with the governor who has immunity.

“The EFCC also did not invite the governor. So, what was the basis for accompanying Bello to our headquarters in Abuja?

“We have not been comfortable with the roles of the governor in this case.

“After fulfilling all procedures of documentation, Bello was expected to come with his lawyer(s) and not a governor or Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs).

“We cannot be intimidated or subject our system to political pollution.

“This made the Executive Chairman of EFCC to direct that no official should attend to Bello. He must undergo due process like every invitee.

“The commission was unhappy with the pre-emptive propaganda in the media by Bello’s team which had created false impressions.

“There was a narration that the ex-governor was already in EFCC’s custody.” A source told The Nation.

“We must fear a second Chernobyl”

Published

18 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Ekwutos Blog

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On the set of French news channel LCI, Sergei Zhirnov, former member of the KGG, commented on the recent statements by the head of NATO against Russia.

NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, supports the use of long-range weapons on Russian territory, which has provoked a virulent reaction from the Kremlin.

But for Sergei Jirnov, consultant for LCI:

“Stoltenberg has a cool head, he says, well, the Russians are a nuclear power, fine, but if we tremble every time there is a madman in the Duma or the Kremlin who pronounces the word nuclear, there’s no point in going out, getting up in the morning, because for two and a half years, they having been spending their time scaring us.”

And Jirnov continues: “the problem is that they’re not very careful with nuclear power. That means that they can create a second Chernobyl and that’s the problem. There are a certain number of specialists who believe that the Russian nuclear arsenal does not exist, and that it’s in a pitiful state”.

(MH with AmBar/Source: LCI/Photo: Yves Alarie/Unsplash)

400,000 displaced as Nigerian floods worsen

Published

22 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Ekwutos Blog

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Aerial footage reveals the vast scale of destruction, with large parts of Borno state submerged. Floods have forced thousands into displacement camps, compounding the region’s existing humanitarian crisis caused by ongoing armed conflict.

Earlier this month, 30 people died after a dam collapse, and more floods are expected following water releases from Cameroon. In Maiduguri, the state capital, 15% of the city remains underwater.

Aid agencies warn that the situation is worsening, especially for those already displaced by violence.