Niger lawmaker urges Buhari to fix refineries

A newly elected member of the Niger State House of Assembly, Mr. Malik Madaki, on Monday urged the incoming Muhammadu Buhari administration to repair the refineries in order to check the perennial scarcity of petroleum products in the country.

Madaki, who was elected to represent Bosso constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja.

The lawmaker, who expressed concern over the scarcity of petroleum products across the country, said Nigerians were undergoing untold hardship as a result of the development.

He said the opportunity to benefit from the nation’s oil resources would continue to elude majority of Nigerians unless corruption in the sector was addressed.

Madaki alleged that a cartel involved in the oil sector was opposed to the optimum performance of the refineries.

“For allowing that to continue, there is no way we can have stable petrol, gas as well as kerosene supplies and the masses will continue to experience this hardship.

“This cartel has continually discouraged the Federal Government from putting the refineries in order.

“The President-elect must, as a matter of national survival, tackle this mess by ensuring that the four refineries are made to work at their optimal capacities,” Madaki said.

NAN reports that long queues have become a common sight in many filling stations due to the acute shortage of petrol across the country.