By Tovin Ngombe:-
Maamba police in Sinazongwe district have raided illegal fuel dealers and seized drums of petrol and diesel.
One police officer at the scene said the dealers have been warned on several occasion to stop the trend of selling fuel in containers but they have failed stopped their illegal trade.
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The police officer told ZANIS that 700 hundred litres of fuel have been confiscated from them.Police have also seized fuel worthy K1.600 million from their fellow officer who have been selling it illegally.Most illegal traders take the advantage of the lack of the filling station in Sinazongwe district and they buy it from Choma district and resell it at an higher price.
The illegal trade have been going on for a long time and a Maamba residence Joseph Syamwela said the illegal fuel traders would not stop as long there was no filling station in the district. Most government officers, farmers, miners and the police officers buy their fuel from the illegal traders.Â
“ We have suffered here police are arresting any vehicle carrying our fuel in containers, now we can not order any as you can see people are coming to buy petrol and diesel but I do not have it,†one Illegal petrol dealer said.
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The named dealer has been conducting the business for long time and he said there is no other business that he does to sustain himself.
“ You know these people have been accusing us that we steal copper wires at the Maamba mine and we stopped it now we are dealing in this business fuel, do they want us to go back to the business of stealing? No let them leave us alone,†another named dealer said.
The illegal venders said police were even seizing from any one carrying fuel in a container.
ZANIS/END/TN
