By Abasi Ita
The Association of Distributors and Transporters of Petroleum Products (ADITOP), Cross River has pledged its readiness to stabilize the unstable pricing of petroleum products in the state in order to ameliorate the sufferings of the masses.
A former Nigerian ambassador to Uganda and Board of Trustee of the ADITOP, south south zone, Etubom Nya Asuquo made the pledge in Calabar while addressing stakeholders at the group’s secretariat located at Calabar Depot .
He decried the indiscriminate levies imposed by key players in the petroleum downstream sector noting that ADITOP is determined to address such exploitations which are inadvertently transfer to the end users to enable marketers break even in the business.
According to the former federal lawmaker; “ADITOP offers itself as a credible alternative with a more humane disposition to unbundle the downstream petroleum sector and provide an alternative with more frantic and human driven approaches”
“ADITOP’s entrants into the oil sub-sector is meant to address the welfare of the drivers and tank farm owners, which has long been neglected by the Nigeria Union of Petroleum Engineers, Petroleum Tankers Drivers (NUPENG PTD).
The monarch called on various key players and host community to team up with ADITOP as the reliable option to protect their interests and welfare.
He lamented the monopolistic tendency of NUPENG arguing that their activities have instigated incessant strike actions without corresponding positive impacts on operators in the system.
Also speaking, the Head of Operations, ADITOP Cross River, Captain Mattew Bassey (rtd.) averred that his organization is operating in harmony with other sister bodies, citing freedom of association and its provisions.
” We are poised to accord priority attention to the welfare and interest of our members who are mostly tankers owners and drivers to curtail the neglect we suffered under NUPENG PTD”
Commenting, , a tanker driver and the Former Chairman,tanker drivers Mainland Depot,Etim Effiong expressed delight over the new organization, even as he called for the scrapping of NUPENG PTD, citing the ill treatment meted on his counterparts, despite paying huge monies as dues.