We are at it again; what should have been a tale of the past still stares us in the face, an ugly sight to behold any day. What more can be scarier than the sight or sound of N400 per litre of Prime Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as fuel and more so, that of sky-rocketing and unaffordable cost of kerosene, the second-line energy source for cooking of the low income earner after firewood. What more can instill a feeling of frustration and sadness in the hearts of Nigerians than this unrelenting surge of high cost or fuel owing to scarcity?
Fuel scarcity as it is popularly referred to as, occurs for many reasons but it seems neither the populace nor the government seem to realize the ‘’poisonous nature’’of this menace. It is indeed hazardous owing to the health consequences of scarcity and scarcity-induced practices. When scarcity looms, hoarding of fuel is usually the first response by petroleum product dealers. Their agents and opportunists roll out their storage drums which they use to buy at pump prices and subsequently sell at hiked prices popularly known as black market prices. Many of these black market dealers store and sell these petroleum products in or near residential areas and it only takes one moment of a fire spark and lives and property are lost to the ensuing inferno. As usual, blames are traded, a cosmetic reaction that only spells medicine after death. In addition to this, scarcity also inspires some crooked minds to sell adulterated petroleum products as the real fuel and unsuspecting buyers purchase these materials and suffer grave consequences. In most cases, these adulterated petroleum products damage motor carburetors causing avoidable incidences of vehicular breakdown, while also contrihuting significantly to the emission of poisonous gaseous products in the atmosphere to the detriment of the health of the inhaling populace. Vehicular breakdown leads to fustration, unhappiness and financial stress and exposure to attacks usually on lonely roads by bandits often leading to loss of lives and properties of motorists.
Fuel scarcity typically leads to the emergence of long queues at petrol stations causing people to spend useful business hours on queues under the scotching heat of the sun, amidst roaring voices and from flaring tempers. This drains them emotionally and its very harmful and anxiety and depression prone individuals. Furthermore during fuel scarcity,the negative effect of our networks of bad roads as it regards undesirable road traffic situations causes people to lose significant work hours on the road, to and from work, reducing thier sleep hours, while also frustrating thier ability to arrive work early and also reduces thier efficiency at work because they are already stressed out.Transport prices are hiked as well making average income earners pay more and gain less from their monthly pay. Goods and services are usually transported from point of origin to other commercial destinations and so their prices are affected by fuel scarcity. The poor masses find it harder to feed and are left to worry more and fall sick all the more thus increasing the disease burden of the society. Obviously, fuel scarcity increases the poverty level of the society and this directly increases crime rate in the society as well. These consequences are very unhealthy for the masses.
The Nigerian story of fuel scarcity is a very sad one given the fact that Nigeria is blessed with abundant resources, one of which is crude oil the precursor of the petroleum products especially PMS which we, every now and then cry out of its scarcity. This is an IRONY!!. This is as a result of corruption which has been nurtured and made chronic and systemically available by years of bad leadership by selfish and unrepentant leaders. From the sardonic blabs of failed and irreparable refineries through the periodic repugnant occasions of petroleum workers industrial action (strikes) to the disgusting tales of subsidy withdrawal, the effect is the same, the masses suffer from unwarranted lack of petroleum products and the hazardous consequences remain unavoidable. Other factors such as bad roads, terrorism and insecurity, epileptic power supply, failing educational systems, to mention but a few add to the national pain. The present administration ably led by President Muhammad Buhari has decided to chair the petroleum sector with the president assuming the role of the Petroleum Minister. It is the prayer of Nigerians that his change mission will provide antidotal therapy to the national poison called fuel scarcity ,quickly bringing to an irreversible end this age long menace; improve the rate of availability of petroleum products than what was obtained during immediate past administration. Most important is the urgent need for both the Nigerian masses and leaders to realize from the points and relationships marshaled out in this piece that fuel scarcity poses a threat to the public health of Nigeria and to recall that since health is wealth, an unhealthy nation is a poor nation. This is a fact that Nigerians must wake up to understand, speak about and task her leaders on, the latter who when faced with the slightest headache use tax payers money to fly abroad for medical treatment.
Finally, fuel scarcity must be seen as an endemic national poison which it is and all hands must be on deck to not just eliminate but subsequently prevent. Measures must be developed now, more than ever to immunize this great nation against incessant occasions of fuel scarcity as a step towards ensuring progress, and then ultimately the much desired peace and unity which are crucial to national development.
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