The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in the South West has given the Buhari-led government a seven days ultimatum to resolve the fuel scarcity in the country.
The student’s body alleged that petrol is continuously being hoarded in the country, describing it as “artificial fuel scarcity”.
The incident, NANS said, has put millions of Nigerians in hardship making their mobility and production activities redundant.
The students’ leaders said it was alarming that Nigerians queue under the sun to buy a litre of fuel for as much as N350.
“No doubt, this scarcity of fuel is a politicised matter by some persons in government and oil marketers for ulterior motives, which is unclear,” NANS stated.
In a statement signed by NANS Coordinator in Zone D, Emmanuel Olatunji and others, the students backed comments by the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, that the fuel crisis is a plot to undermine the chances of the Southwest in the forthcoming presidential elections.
NANS described the scarcity as blackmail instigated to spread propaganda that if Tinubu’s party could not resolve the crisis while in power, he does not deserve the people’s vote.
While saying Southerners are aware of this plot, the association asked the Federal Government to resolve the lingering fuel scarcity as “it is becoming a threat to the interest of the South West.”
The South West students said they would not allow a reoccurrence of the June 12, 1993 scenario, where “the popular candidate of the people was shortchanged only because he is a Yoruba man.”
“Hence the failure of the government to resolve this fuel scarcity within 7 working days from today shall have the entire students populace in the South West under NANS Zone D mobilize all her resources to protest and stampede the activities of the government at all ports,” NANS threatened.
