“It is alarming that Nigerians that stand in a queue under the sun to buy a little of fuel for as much as #350 in the open market”
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has issued an ultimatum to the Federal Government to resolve the lingering fuel crisis within seven working days or face the wrath of the students.
The students under the auspices of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS ZONE D), lamented what is happening is an artificial scarcity of fuel, which they said has put millions of Nigerians in hardship, making their mobility and production activities redundant.
This was contained in a statement on Saturday and signed by Comrade Adegboye Emmanuel Olatunji, NANS Zone D Coordinator, Comrade Kehinde Damilola, Chairman NANS Ogun, Comrade Adeleke Quadri Chairman NANS Oyo and Omotosho Surprise, Chairman NANS Ondo, and made available to newsmen.
The student body while alleging sabotage and conspiracy, threatened to mobilise its members with all available resources to ground government activities at the nation’s ports, if the government fails to resolve the crisis.
The statement read in part: “The body of all Nigerian students in the South West under the banner of National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS ZONE D) has watched with dismay the continuous hoarding of petrol in the country.
“What is frustrating and calls for interrogation is why a nation blessed with natural crude oil with enormous resources would still be languishing in demand for fuel in the 21st century.
“It is alarming that Nigerians that stand in a queue under the sun to buy a little of fuel for as much as #350 in the open market! No doubt, this scarcity of fuel is a politicized matter by some persons in government and oil marketers for ulterior motives which is unclear.
“We are most concerned that this artificial fuel scarcity which has subjected the Nigerian masses to a people fighting one another as they take a turn in the queue for fuel at different filling stations in the country is a plot by an agent of distortion to undermine the chances of the Southwest in the forthcoming presidential elections.
“Flowing from the speech of the presidential candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in Abeokuta yesterday 25th of January, 2023, it can be deduced that some persons are creating the scarcity purposely as an instrument to use against the leading Yoruba presidential candidate who is a member of the ruling party.
“This scarcity had since become a blackmail instigated by these people to spread propaganda that since the party of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu could not resolve the crisis in power he therefore not deserve the people’s vote.
“Unfortunately for them, Nigerians and most importantly we as Southerners are aware of this plot.
“In this regard, we have decided as a people to organize and speak in the interest of the South West that no form of conspiracy shall be overlooked.
“We are by this press release demanding from the Federal Government of Nigeria responsible and responsive actions to resolve this lingering fuel scarcity as it is becoming a threat not only to the livelihood of Nigerians in general but also the interest of South West in general.
“We shall not sit and watch a reoccurrence of the 1993 atrocities through which the popular candidate of the people was shortchanged only because he is a Yoruba man.
“As much as we would not want to sound ethnocentric and sentimental as an organisation, it is of utmost importance to us as well that a plot to silence the interest of any section of a society is a threat to justice generally.
“Hence, a failure of the government to resolve this fuel scarcity within 7 working days from today shall have the entire students populace in the South West under NANS Zone D mobilize all her resources to protest and stampede the activities of the government at all ports”
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