by EFEGADIRIM MADUABUCHI, Uyo
Intervention by Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has rescued the State from acute shortage of Premium Motor Spirit whose price soared to N300/litre.

 Acute fuel shortage hit the State following a strike action embarked upon by members of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and an indigenous oil company,Universal Energy Company, owned by the State Government  

 The union members were protesting the sacking of workers by Universal Energy without following due process.

 During the period of the strike, tanker drivers (PTD) did not bring their products to the state, thereby forcing petroleum marketers to increase the price of petrol to N300 per litre.

 The latest round of petrol scarcity which came few days after sanity was about to return to the distribution of petrol, led to public outcry in the state, as it grounded economic activities.

 The intervention by Governor Emmanuel followed a meeting  with the union officials, after which the union agreed to suspend the strike, and directed all petrol stations to resume selling petrol to consumers at an approved pump price.

 Harry Bassey, an official of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) who confirmed the development, gave assurance that the scarcity of petroleum product would end within 72 hours.

 He said the strike was a result of Universal Energy company not willing  to follow due process in the layoff of 28 members of the association.

 "Fuel scarcity will end within 72 hours. The main cause of the problem was that Universal Energy Resources Limited did not follow due process in the redundancy exercise it carried which affected about 28 of our members,” Bassey said.

 He apologized to the people and government of Akwa Ibom State for what our actions must have caused them.