The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) says it has sealed 16 filling stations for selling petrol above N145 per litre pump price.
The Operations Controller of DPR in Akwa Ibom, Tamunoiminabo Sundaye, made the disclosure in an interview in Eket on Monday.
Sundaye, however revealed that some of the affected stations had paid the penalty and had signed undertaking with the department “to be of good behaviour.”
He said the department had begun close monitoring of filling stations to ensure that they reverse their pumps to dispense petrol at N145 per litre.
He also said the agency had engaged private depot owners to ensure that they sell the product at ex-depot price to marketers.
The Controller deplored the conduct of independent marketers, who he accused of taking advantage of recent “upset in the oil market’’ to exploit the public by selling petrol above regulated rate.
He alleged that the marketers were creating artificial scarcity of the product in the state.
“I will not really say that there is much scarcity in Akwa Ibom because there is no queue.
“What happened is that our brothers and sisters took opportunity of what happened in Lagos and Abuja, which, of course, is normal now.
“Our people and their normal way of doing things, started selling above government approved pump price and we have sealed a number of filling stations over it,’’ Sundaye said.
Sundaye appealed to marketers to do the business in accordance with rules and regulations of the petroleum sector, saying that the present administration would not tolerate sharp practises in the industry.