The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) Depot Chairmen Forum has given the federal government a seven-working-day ultimatum to settle its outstanding bridging claims, which exceed N100 billion.
In a communiqué issued on Monday in Abuja, the forum’s chairman, Alhaji Yahaya Alhassan, warned that if the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) fails to make the payment within the stipulated time, marketers will halt the loading and distribution of petroleum products nationwide.
He said: “If NMDPRA does not pay our money within seven working days we are going to withdraw our services in all over the country and we are going to withdraw our tanks from loading and discharging. At the same time, we are going to lock all our stations across Nigeria.”
He said the forum is frustrated that a year after the demand for the payment, the NMDPRA has continued to ignore the demand.
He recalled that the NMDPRA promised to pay at the stakeholders meeting convened on the eve of the last strike action declared by Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) over the non-payment.
