Ogun border fuel ban frustrates communities as residents call for full lifting to ease hardship and curb black-market petrol prices
Ogun State residents have renewed calls for the complete lifting of the border fuel ban, highlighting the ongoing economic hardship and inflated black-market prices in communities along Nigeria’s borders.
The appeal comes six years and two months after former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration prohibited filling stations within 20 kilometres of land borders, a measure intended to curb fuel smuggling and block terrorist access to petroleum products.
Border communities in Ipokia, Imeko-Afon, Yewa North, and Yewa South local government areas have been particularly affected.
Ahmed Ismaila, Chairman of the Community Development Association in Iwoye-Ketu, described transportation costs soaring during shortages, with black-market fuel prices peaking at N2,000 per litre.
Partial waivers granted to select stations in 2020 and May 2025 have provided some relief.
However, residents report that limited supply and irregular sales have forced them to sleep at stations overnight or pay up to N5,000 for transport to access fuel.
Oba Akintunde Akinyemi, Eselu of Eselu Kingdom, questioned why the ban persists despite the removal of fuel subsidies, urging President Bola Tinubu to restore full access while maintaining robust border security.
Comrade Yinka Folarin, National President of the Committee for the Defense of Human Rights, described the policy as discriminatory, noting that restricted fuel access undermines residents’ constitutional and human rights to an adequate standard of living.
Folarin called for security reinforcements along borders and unrestricted fuel sales to revive local economies.
The Nigeria Customs Service has reported the seizure of over 190,000 litres of petrol in Ogun and neighbouring Lagos in the past year.
Fresh concerns have emerged over compliance with a court order issued by the High Court of Kano State on April 8, 2026, restraining key parties—including the Honourable Minister of Education, the Kano State Ministry of Land and Physical Planning, the Kano State Urban Development Authority, and Pluck Global Company Limited—from further actions pending the determination of the matter before the court.
Findings indicate that while all parties—except the concessionaire, Pluck Global Company Limited—were duly served within two days of the order, significant challenges were encountered in effecting service on the company, raising troubling questions about its corporate traceability and regulatory vetting.
A review of the company’s records filed with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) revealed addresses that could not be verified as functional business locations. Notably, documentation submitted to Federal Government College (FGC), Kano, dated June 20, 2024, listed two addresses: 8B, Lalupon Street, off Keffi Street, off Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, as its head office, and 3 Bargery Road, Bompai, Kano, as its branch office.
However, a physical visit to the Ikoyi address revealed that the entire property is occupied by a company identified as Golden Alchemy, whose staff категорically denied any knowledge of, or shared occupancy with, Pluck Global Company Limited.
Efforts to trace the Kano address yielded even more unsettling findings. The location—a locked duplex—showed no visible signs of commercial activity. Neighbours, while reluctant to speak on record, alluded to irregular movements at odd hours, casting further doubt on the legitimacy of the premises as a corporate office.
In a twist, after multiple attempts to establish contact, an individual purportedly representing the company surfaced in Kano and agreed to receive and acknowledge the court order on April 11, 2026, at approximately 6:00 pm. Curiously, the Ikoyi address—already discredited—was again listed as the company’s official address in the acknowledgment.
These developments raise critical questions regarding due diligence and Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols on the part of the Federal Ministry of Education. They also cast a spotlight on the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), should a concession agreement indeed have been executed with the company. Stakeholders say it would be instructive to review the addresses contained in all official correspondences and contractual documents linked to the transaction.
Meanwhile, a visit to the premises of Federal Government College, Kano, revealed ongoing construction activity, with workers observed excavating foundations. When approached, the workers declined to disclose the authority under which they were operating—despite the subsistence of a court order restraining further action.
Notably, a previously installed project billboard bearing the insignia of the school authorities and the Federal Ministry of Education had been removed. Sources within the institution suggest that the directive for its removal may have emanated from the Ministry following receipt of the court order.
The unfolding situation presents a complex mix of legal, regulatory, and accountability issues—raising the spectre of possible non-compliance with judicial directives, as well as deeper concerns about transparency in public-private concession arrangements.
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