By Rafiu Ajakaye

LAGOS, Nigeria

Nigeria deployed thousands of paramilitary police to petrol stations on Monday, an official said, as public anger over fuel queues grew.

Members of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) were posted to fuel outlets across the country to curb the black market sale of petrol and diesel.

“The government has also outlawed the selling of petrol on roadsides and directed the NSCDC official to arrest and prosecute offenders,” NSCDC Commandant General Abdullahi Muhammadu said in a statement.

The state-owned Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, which imports around 90 percent of the country’s refined fuel needs, has alleged widespread diversion of petrol by distributors keen to sell above the official price of 87 nairas ($0.44) per liter.

Muhammadu said round-the-clock monitoring would “ascertain that what is trucked out from the depots is delivered at the designated fuel stations and dispensed to the public in the most efficient manner.”

President Muhammadu Buhari is facing widespread criticisms as motorists endure long queues to buy fuel which is sometimes sold for more than double the official price.