The Kwara State branch of Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has revealed that loading activities at the Ilorin NNPC Depot will resume next month. The depot has for the past two years not been operational as a result of vandalism of fuel pipelines.

Making the revelation during a chat with Pilot Business on Friday, the state Chairman of the Association, Mr. Okanlawon Olanrewaju stated that the state government is working relentlessly with the Federal Government to achieve this. Okanlawon said government is looking into the conditions given by the association for loading to resume at the Ilorin Depot.

"By the grace of God, very soon, maybe before next month we will start loading in Ilorin depot. The state and the Federal governments are collaborating on it. "We have been able to achieve some levels of understanding with the state government," he stated.

On the call for redeployment of the DPR controller in the state, he stressed that government is looking into the issue. Justifying the sale of fuel above the official pump price by independent marketers in the state, he said " the products you are seeing is gotten from private depots, definitely it will be sold a little bit higher than the official rate.

He, however, said that the body will ensure that independent marketers who took delivery of PMS from NNPC sell at the control price. "This is one of the agreements we had with the state government because we'll be feeding the public with information from the depot on daily basis so that everybody will monitor that person (marketer)."

He noted that no reasonable marketer will collaborate with vandals and any of its member caught encouraging vandalism would be dealt with. Okanlawon called for capital punishment for vandals, saying "they should be killed at sight, it should be shoot at sight order because they are killing our businesses.

"We are urging government at all levels to clampdown on these vandals." On the issue of factions at the state level of IPMAN he said, "there is no faction in IPMAN, when we embarked on the warning strike as you see all the members cooperated. "We are calling on all aggrieved members of the association to come so that we can work amicably."