Fuel Scarcity: Protesters Demand Kyari’s Sack, Decry ‘Calculated Perpetuation Of Suffering’

Scores of demonstrators took to the streets of Abuja on Monday to demand the immediate dismissal of the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, Mele Kyari, over the lingering fuel scarcity bedeviling the country.

The protest, which was convened by the Coalition of Concerned Civil Society Organizations, came on the heels of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited’s confession that its substantial debt to suppliers is endangering the sustainable fuel supply.

“The fuel scarcity we endure today is not just a mere inconvenience; it is a calculated perpetuation of suffering. Under Mr. Kyari’s leadership, the situation has gone from bad to worse, with no end in sight. What has he done to alleviate this crisis? It is clear he seems intent on maintaining a status quo that benefits only a select few while the masses suffer,” said Aminu Abbas, Convener of the Coalition of Concerned Civil Society Organizations.

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The protesters chanted solidarity admits and displayed several banners that read ‘We are tired of fuel scarcity and stories on why refineries are not working’, ‘No direction under Kyari’, and ‘We want accountability in the affairs of NNPCL’.

“The answer lies in the gross incompetence and mismanagement that have become the hallmarks of Mr. Kyari’s leadership. We will not be silenced. Mr. Kyari must be shown the way out, and the NNPCL must be reformed to serve the interests of all Nigerians,” Abbas added.

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, also raised concerns that the rising cost of living, arbitrary hike in the pump price of petrol, and its attendant scarcity had contributed to the number of fewer vehicles plying the Nigerian roads.