A leadership tussle in the Independent Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) is threatening to spark a fresh fuel scarcity in the country, according to indications yesterday.
In contention is the presidency of the association which the incumbent National President, Alhaji Aminu Abdulkadir said yesterday was being claimed by former South-East Zonal Chairman, Obasi Lawson.
Alhaji Abdulkadir told reporters yesterday in Abuja that Lawson ignored a court order procured by IPMAN restraining him from parading himself as president of IPMAN and proceeded to obtain “another order from a court of similar jurisdiction in Port-Harcourt and said the court appointed him as president of the association.”
Lawson’s action,he claimed, could erode marketers’ confidence in the association and impact negatively on product supply.
His words: “For those our members who would not understand these technicalities that is why we are afraid that it may affect the flow of product supply in this country if it is not checked on time.”
He said: “I think with this his action, if not checked through the media like this today, it could cause serious disruption. That is what informed this press conference so that we restore confidence into our members so that they can pay in their money, they can lift their product without having losses.”
He said Lawson failed to appeal the May 9, 2013 verdict of Justice A.M. Liman of the Federal High Court sitting in Benin-City, but chose to approach a different court of same competent jurisdiction.
Abdulkadir recalled that the last fuel scarcity was prompted by “a small problem that we had in the industry. The chains of lines attached to these refineries, we have about four refineries in Nigeria so sometime, when one or two are hit by vandals we have contraction of supply internally in the hinterland.
“So we will be left with no option than to move these products from the coast to land. By so doing, you are congesting the jetties, congesting the oil terminals. Therefore, we cannot achieve the capacity to move products 100% by road haulage.”
