#FuelScarcity may come back. FG's resolution with Marketers yesterday explains why...

So you heard the FG and MOMAN (Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria) had an agreement at their meeting yesterday which resulted in 'suspending' the strike and asking marketers to lift fuel and distribute across the nation within 6 hours from the close of the meeting or have depots sealed off.

So is everything sorted out? No.

What do the marketers want?

They want their subsidy debts paid and the foreign exchange increase(dollar)/bank interests/charges to be covered by this government before its tenure expires as the banks have deducted debts owed from the initial money the FG paid them, hence, they cannot pay transporters. Who wants to negotiating on subsidy with Buhari who says he doesn't know what subsidy means?

What does the FG want?

Okonjo-Iweala, coordinating minister of the economy says the N159 billion of marketer's claim is fraudulent, and she will not pay such, and the marketers are sabotaging the economy.

Way Forward?

The senate committee came to a decision which both parties agreed to. The committee set up by the FG to verify marketer's claims must finish its job and submit its report before the end of this government's tenure (which I think is unlikely) or the FG should state in its handover note to Buhari's government that the FG is in the process of negotiating with marketers, and they should be paid their balance.

Conclusion.

If the FG's committee's report does not favour the marketers or Buhari decides to do his own verification of the marketers claims and goes ahead to remove subsidy, the horrible drama we have witnessed in the past few days may likely re-occur.