By Correspondent in Lokoja.
A journey of about one kilometre from Ganaja junction to Gadumo village in Lokoja Local Governnent Area of kogi state by kekenap, which used to cost commuters N50 per trip on Monday, doubled as they groan under the yoke of worsening scarcity of fuel in the area and the country at large.
Our Correspondent, who monitored fuel situation at headquarters of the local government area,reports that in the same vein, inter local government transport fares have also gone up astronomically with fare Lokoja to Okene increased from N700 to N1,500, same with Idah, Ankpa, Kabba up to Egbe local Government Areas showing frightening hike.
In few filling stations where the product was made available sale, long queue of vehicles became conspicuous. At Ganaja junction where one of the filling stations sold fuel,the queue of vehicles led to the blockage of of one of the lanes of the road.
Mrs Halimat Mohammed, a house wife who went to the old market, Lokoja, to buy food stuffs,told our Correspondent that price situation in the market “is better imagined than said.
“Every consumable food item you can think of carries double price with sellers attributing the negative development to scarcity of fuel,”she said.
Members of the public, in their separate interview with the our Correspondent, renewed their clarion call on the federal government to ease the suffering of the people, occasioned by the scarcity by accelerating the process of making available, fuel in abundance to the filling stations.
Some of the commercial drivers, who spoke with The Reporters, disclosed that they bought a litre of fuel for as high as N500 per litre at the black market.
The online publication further reports that most of the filling stations in Lokoja dispensed at N200 and above, instead of the official pump price of N165 per litre.
Our Correspondent observed that some women were seen in some filling stations, armed with 25 litres of jerricans, suggestive of the possibility of them indulging fuel black market,an illegal activity hitherto exclusive for men.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
