President Muhammadu Buhari has apologised to Nigerians over the petrol scarcity and power outage experienced in the country. Since February, there has been petrol scarcity in the country following the importation of off-spec petrol into the country.
The scarcity, although now easing off in parts of the country, led to hike in the price of petrol as well as long queues at filling stations.
Meanwhile, there are currently reports of power outages across the country, with the national grid said to have collapsed twice within the past 72 hours.
According to a statement issued on Wednesday by Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, Buhari said the federal government is taking steps to address the situation. The president stated that he regrets the inconvenience experienced by Nigerians regarding petrol shortage.
He also added that actions would be taken against those responsible for worsening the situation at depots. On epileptic power supply, Buhari said “the blackouts seen in the national grid are also being addressed”.
“A dip in hydroelectric generation due to seasonal pressures has coincided with technical and supply problems at thermal stations,” he added. On this, the government is also working tirelessly to resolve the issues at the latter to guarantee sufficient power flows into the national grid.”
