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Layi Olanrewaju, Ilorin
Disturbed by the complaints and suffering of border communities in Kwara State over scarcity and high cost of petroleum products, Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has appealed to the Joint Border Operation Drill, North-Central zone, to look into mitigating the situation.
A Daily Sun enquiry with members of the NUPENG, PTD and NURTW in the areas indicated that a litre of petrol is sold at about N400 per litre as against the normal price of N143 per litre.
Speaking when the coordinator of the Joint Border Drill Operations, Mohammad Uba Garba, led other heads of security agencies in the group to the Governor’s office, Ilorin on Wednesday, Governor Abdulrazaq said that there are challenges of supply of petroleum products to border communities in the state.
“On order of the Federal Government that all filling stations selling petroleum products 20 kilometres away from border communities should be closed down, we have many border communities in the state and there are challenges getting the commodities to these areas. We’ll want to work with you so we can get petrol there, probably designating few petrol stations to sell the product, if not all, so we can mitigate their sufferings and make petrol available to them.
“The issue of border closure is a wake-up call to us as a country. There are enormous challenges ahead to Nigeria due to trade agreement signed with other neighbouring countries with free trade and free movement of people. There is also a challenge of smuggling of goods. So our borders and trade need to be secured and protected against the negative effect of the agreement,” he said.
The Governor, who promised to be proactive with the security group, commended the operation drill for the prevailing relative security in the state, saying the issue of border closure centres around security and economy.
He also called for adequate welfare and proper equipment to help them do their job, saying that the government would do its best to assist and support in any way possible.
Earlier, joint border drill coordinator Garba said that plans are on the way to ensure relief in the area.
“We are aware of the difficulty being faced by border communities in the state. We have been there to sensitise the people. Plans are underway to ensure people who genuinely use petrol get relief very soon. For instance, there’ll be designated filling stations in each of the local government areas affected where the products will be dispensed. We also want to liaise with local government chairmen so that the products are not exported out of Nigeria.
“Recently, in Chikanda border community, about 135 drums of petroleum products were arrested and seized. We are now in touch with Custom high command to auction it to government institutions. About 10 million petroleum products are exported illegally out of Nigeria at night. This success was achieved by the border drill operations. If this smuggling had continued it could affect planning for development purposes and supply to Nigerians because of inaccurate data,” he said.
He also called for the support and cooperation of the state government to educate citizens on the border closure policy, saying that the government still encourages legal business such as the exportation of locally produced items.
