NPA “Surprised” Fameye Took GHC25K Compensation After Refusing Probe Into Fuel Adulteration Claim
The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has expressed concern about musician Fameye’s decision to take reparation from an unidentified Oil Marketing Company (OMC) over a fuel adulteration claim.
The musician on March 20 announced he had been sold water laced with fuel at a station which had damaged his car.
He tweeted, “So few days ago ,I go buy fuel for one fuel station ,700 cedis,the rest is heart breaking They filled my tank with water mixed with petrol as I’m talking to you now my car Honda pilot touring 2019 model is spoilt 😢 Spent 7k already still not working!!! What do I do?”
So few days ago ,I go buy fuel for one fuel station ,700 cedis,the rest is heart breaking They filled my tank with water mixed with petrol as I’m talking to you now my car Honda pilot touring 2019 model is spoilt 😢 Spent 7k already still not working!!! What do I do?
— peter (@Fameye) March 15, 2023
On Tuesday, April 18, news went round that the musician had received compensation of GHC25,000 from the said OMC.
This came as a surprise to the NPA who said the management of the artiste had refused to file a complaint for investigations into the allegation and subsequent punishment of the OMC.
“The news that music artiste Peter Bozah alias Fameye has received GHc25,000 compensation from an unnamed Oil Marketing Company (OMC) for allegedly selling him fuel contaminated with water came to the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) with surprise.”
It said the artiste had been approached from the time he sounded the alarm till Tuesday when the news broke that he had received compensation, however, his Management refused to name the OMC and its location.
According to the Authority, his management said it would handle the case itself.
But the NPA notes that its Quality Assurance Directorate and the Consumer Service Department are mandated to investigate such incidents.
It said through interactions between the NPA and consumers, some OMCs have in the past paid compensations in kind and cash, adding that this has also reduced the failure rate of fuel adulteration from 6.2% in 2016 to 1.37% in 2022.
In the case of Fameye, the Authority fears that if true, may handicap it from protecting other customers of the unnamed OMC.
“Assuming that Fameye’s claim of purchasing fuel contaminated with water is valid, how can the NPA protect the interest of other consumers who might have purchased or are still purchasing fuel from the unnamed fuel outlet.”
In September 2022, the NPA closed down the Shell Filling station at Adomi Bridge (Atimpoku) in the Eastern Region for selling water–laced petroleum products to unsuspecting customers.
This was after the authority investigated complaints in a viral video by some consumers who had purchased fuel from the outlet.
