File Photo: Ibe Kachikwu on an inspection of Robert Island where oil pipeline was vandalised

Dr Ibe Kachikwu has joined President Muhammadu Buhari in apologising to Nigerians on the lingering fuel scarcity, but he promised that the  massive queues at the various petrol stations will disappear in the next two days.

He spoke today at a monitoring tour of filling stations in Abuja.

“I apologise to Nigerians for all the pains, nobody wants to see people spend up to two hours on fuel queues.

“The president is very bothered about this, and if there is anything that bothers him, it is the sight of people waiting for fuel but we are doing everything we can, the NNPC is taking the whole nation on its shoulders.

Kachikwu added that the corporation had massively increased its truck out petrol to depots and filling stations in the country.

“God willing, we will see this through and in the next one or two days, we should be clear and we are looking at long term

“Impressive, we have enough coming in, obviously the three days of strike hit us very badly but we are supplying an average of over 300 trucks again into Abuja.

” It is going to take a bit of while for the queues to clear off and we are hoping that between tomorrow and the next one, two days, the queues will all disappear.

“We are continuing to pump in, a lot of our stations are open 24 hours a day,” he said

The minister noted that as long term strategy, there would be the need to systemically look at how to prepare the nation in circumstances to respond to emergencies.

He said that he would initiate a long term solution to curb the menace of products scarcity in the country.

“We are obviously not getting it as well as we should,” he added.

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