Human rights lawyer, Festus Keyamo, has called for investigation into the illicit act of the use of kerosene as aviation fuel, describing it as the height of man’s inhumanity to man.
This was contained in a statement made available to newsmen yesterday.
According to him, “The media was awash with a scary story of how some unscrupulous oil marketers now sell house-hold kerosene as aviation fuel, all in a bid to make astronomical and criminal profit at the expense of thousands of human life. This exposé, if found to be true, can best be described as the height of man’s inhumanity to man.
“The reports have it that some oil marketers in Nigeria now substitute house hold kerosene (HHK) for jet A1(aviation fuel) which is believed to be one of the causes of the incessant air crashes we have experienced in this country in the recent past.
“The reports also have it that the said kerosene is sold by the PPMC at the ex-depot and regulated price of N40.90 per litre, with the objective of reselling to the average Nigerians at the pump price of N50 per litre. However, given the fact that the said HHK share some physical and chemical properties with Jet A1 aviation fuel, some marketers have resorted to diverting it to the aviation industry and now sell it to both local and international Airlines operators in place of Aviation Fuel at the rate of N140 per litre.”
The legal luminary stressed that the dangerous implications of the use of kerosene as aviation fuel include significant damage to the aircraft and the engine, fuel system corrosion, clogging of fuel filtration components, failure of aircraft fuel system instrumentation and stopping of the fuel supply to the engine during flight amongst others.
Keyamo maintained that the use of HHK as aviation fuel portends a serious threat to the flying public.
He therefore called on President Buhari to set up a high-level inquiry to investigate the nefarious activities of the oil marketers and airlines that engage in this dastardly act in order to ensure safety of lives and property in the aviation industry.
