Fuel scarcity: Passengers lament increase in transportation fares in Ilorin

Due to the present gasoline shortage, some commuters in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara, have expressed dissatisfaction with the fee increases in the city.

On Sunday, a few of them informed reporters that since the fuel subsidy was eliminated, their fares had increased and they are now paying twice as much.

Due to a shortage of fuel, fares have increased in the city of Ilorin from Saturday.

Review of fares

The old fee of N100 to Olunlade to Offa Garage is now N200. What used to cost N200 from Offa Garage to Mandate Market is today, depending on negotiating power, between N350 and N400.

And it now costs N400 from Olunlade to the Post Office. Additionally, instead of charging N150 and N200, commercial motorcycle riders that operate in regions near crossroads now charge between N250 and N300.

Mrs Grace Philip, who went to shop at Mandate Market, said the cost of transportation reduced what she was able to buy in the market.

”Already, the money I had with me could not buy all we needed in the house. But I just had to come and manage. On getting to the road, the transportation fare doubled.

”This means the limited money I have will be affected again, which boils down to the fact that what we are going through is unbearable.

”There were rumours that the price of fuel would reduce for some weeks now. But instead, it has become more expensive and even unavailable because people are struggling to buy it,” she said.

On her part, Mrs Aisha Mohammed said she will have to trek from the junction where she will be dropped off to her house because the money meant for the motorbike has been spent on plying the main road.

She begged that the situation be put under control soon because it won’t be easy for people to get to where they earn their living.

Mr Umar Haroon expressed sympathy with the students. He said they would spend most of their time scrambling for transportation due to the limited number of vehicles on the road.

He said they would be tired by the time they get to school. So they may not be useful to themselves for the rest of the day.

Meanwhile, only a few filling stations were selling fuel, with attendant long queues of vehicles.

Some sellers dispensed a litre of fuel for N750. Others sold it for between N850 and N900. Also, black marketers sold for as high as N1,000 or N1,500 per litre.

NAN