Petrol scarcity in Abuja and neighbouring Nasarawa and Niger states persisted on and provoked an over 100 per cent rise in transport fares in many locations of the affected areas.
Also, hundreds of black marketers of petrol surfaced in various roads in Abuja and environs, as they sold the commodity at between N300 to N500 per litre.
The scarcity of petrol led to severe queues by motorists in front of the few filling stations that dispensed the commodity.
Transport fares were hiked by commercial transporters; for instance, the fare from Zuba, a border town between Abuja and Niger, to Berger, which used to be between N250 and N300, was raised to N600.
Similarly, taxi drivers in Abuja city centre jerked up their rates by over 100 per cent, collecting over N1,000 for distances that they previously accepted between N500 and N700.
Reacting to the development, oil marketers stated that the supply of petrol by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation had been distorted.
