The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has called for the privatisation of the nation’s refineries.
According to him, it has become evident that the Nigerian government cannot run some businesses and a time to stop the deception is now.
Speaking on Thursday when he received the management of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), led by the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari in Abuja, Abbas said the privatization should be done before Dangote refineries come on stream.
According to him, Dangote refineries would expose the inadequacies of the government-run refineries and the inefficiencies would become more naked due to competition.
He argued that the condition and activities of the national refineries in the past twenty years are shameful, and workers are getting paid for doing almost nothing.
The Speaker however said that the NNPC Limited will be supported for success and optimal function.
“There is need to make these refineries have multi-dimensional uses, if there is no crude oil, are there other activities that can make the workers to be active so that what they earn is deserved; I need you and your management to look at how we can turn around this decades of losses.
“One way to do so is to find a way to privatise these refineries; we have spent so much money and time deceiving ourselves that some businesses can be run by the government.
“In the case of the refineries, we have now realised that some sectors of NNPC business can only be handled by the private sector and our refineries are one of those.
“The inadequacies will become manifest as soon as Dangote’ refinery comes on board because the competition will be there, and inefficiencies of the refineries will become more naked.
“I want you to put it as part of your cardinal objectives, let us find ways to privatise our refineries so that they can be active so that in the near future, they will be able to compete with new refineries that will come up,” Abbas said.
During the visit, the NNPCL boss assured that the nation’s refineries would resume operations gradually by December 2023 and by the end of 2024, Nigeria would stop importing fuel.
