Barely two months ago, the country was faced with a fuel crisis that brought businesses to a standstill, with drivers and fuel dealers going on strike. In one month (March), pump price of fuel was increased twice from Le10,000 to Le12,000 and finally Le15,000. Last week, and even up to the weekend, fuel stations were jam-parked with long queues of vehicles waiting for fuel, leading many residents to intimate that another fuel price increase is in the offing, Should this happen, the chances of President Bio having a second term will be thrown to the wind, as the accompanying hardship will drive the populace to vote him out.
However, the regulatory body, the Petroleum Regulatory Agency issued a release assuring the public that things are under control and there should be no panic buying.
Unfortunately, sources close to the Oil Marketing Companies say that they are finding it very difficult to get/ foreign exchange to purchase fuel from abroad, as there seem to be a scarcity of dollar in the market, and this will eventually force them to buy the dollar in the black market, which will eventually mean that they will have to increase the price of fuel or run at a Loss, as the government is yet to fulfill its part of providing them with foreign exchange needed to order for the commodity.
Some critics say that the claims of these OMCS are fake and calculated to force the government government to increase the price to what they had originally wanted, which was kicked against by the government, which was Le18,000 per litre. They argued that immediately after the fuel crisis of March, a huge consignment of fuel was offloaded at the terminal by several vessels, and it is impossible to say that this consignment has finished in under two months.
It is the view of concerned Sierra Leoneans that if another fuel price increase is effected, the hardship in the country will be most unbearable, and the ordinary man will face the brunt of all this. With any increase in fuel price goes exponential increase in all commodities in the market, including food, transportation, clothing and building materials. Many believe that this will be the nail to the coffin that will seal the complete defeat of the ruling party in the coming 2023 elections and give an easy ride to State House for the opposition
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