LAGOS – Mr Basil Ogbuanu, President, National Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM), has appealed to the Federal Government to make sustainable polices that would boost the use of gas for domestic purposes in Nigeria.
Ogbuanu made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Wednesday.
He said that such policies would help to strengthen the use of domestic gas, adding that LPG was environment-friendly.
He added that the usage of gas for domestic purposes, especially in cooking was expected to generate more funds for the development of the economy.
Ogbuanu said that lack of government policy and the dearth of cylinders for the storage and usage of gas were some of the challenges confronting the association in the quest to make gas the energy for the future.
According to him, a situation where only 15 million cylinders are available in Nigeria with a population of over 160 million people is an impediment to the use of domestic gas as cooking fuel.
He, however, noted that succour was coming the way of the gas marketers as a cylinder manufacturing firm located at the Berger area of Lagos, had commenced production.
Ogbuanu said the association had given its members one year to upgrade their gas dispensing plants as part of the agenda of bringing gas to the doorsteps of the consumers nationwide.
“Before now, cylinders in different sizes were very scarce, but now they are readily available in 5kg and 6kg.
He attributed the surge in gas usage to massive investment in gas projects by Nigerians, adding that the Nigeria LNG Ltd had increased the price of the product for end users.
Ogbuanu decried the incidence of double taxation and the incessant harassment of the association’s members by the officials of the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) for payment of tax and value added tax.[eap_ad_2]
He noted that this had continued in spite of the tax exemption granted them by the Federal Government during former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s regime.
He argued that government was supposed to be a continuous process that provides goods and services as well as relief to the greatest number of people.
Ogbuanu also pointed out that the deployment of unskilled people to plants that were not given permit by the Department of Petroleum Resource (DPR), and people who were not permitted to build gas plant were other threats to the sector.
He added that this could cause industrial accident that might have negative impact on both the people and the environment if not addressed by the government.
The NALPGAM boss advised the Federal Government to stop subsidising the consumption of petroleum products in the country, especially petrol and kerosene because of the increasing dwindling revenue. (NAN)[eap_ad_3]