A civil society group, the Social Integrity Network (SINET), has called on the leadership of the Nigerian Senate to intervene and halt the plan trade-out of Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited and Itakpe Iron Ore Company to capitalists, warning against a repeat of Delta Steel Company scenario.
SINET which made the appeal after it emergency national meeting in Jos, Plateau State, North Central Nigeria, also requested that a committee be set up to look into the ongoing plan for concession with a view to ensuring that the process would equally be of beneficial to the greater good of Nigerian people.
The group in a communique issued at the end of the meeting signed by its national coordinator, Ibrahim Issah, said that the call on the Senate President Ahmad Lawan was in reaction to some newspaper advertorials calling for bids for the concession of the two assets.
According to the group, the senate president should ensure that the process is halted, reversed and handed over to the incoming administration for proper scrutiny and consideration with the national interest.
They accused Minister for Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, to have hand in the questionable deal aimed at subjecting Nigerians to eternal hardship in an attempt to heed to the bidding of some capitalists whose moves were antithetical to national interest and economic growth.
The concession of national heritages such as National Iron Ore Company Limited, Itakpe, and Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited, according to the group, should be subjected to thorough Legislative Processes and Contributions from major stakeholders such as the Manufacturers of Association of Nigeria, (MAN) with considerable time frame.
It expressed worry why President Muhammadu Buhari-led government was stampeding the entire process when it had only about 34 days to hand over leadership to a new democratically elected government of Bola Tinubu, stressing that the outgoing government should be sensitive to the fact that adequate time was required for genuine participation for equity, fairness, and justice to Nigerians.
"There is a need for the leadership of the National Assembly, Civil Society Organizations, Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, (ICPC) Bureau of Public Enterprises, (BPE), and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) to quickly intervene and order immediate reversal of the process in the interest of over 200million Nigerians. Failure to do this is tantamount to the fact that Nigeria is sitting on the keg of gunpowder and only waiting to explode.
"Its explosion will no doubt set the economy of Nigeria backward geometrically and further create some unforeseen consequential repercussions for the incoming administration amidst numerous campaign promises, high determination to deliver as well as high expectations from the electorates," the communique partly read.
Speaking further SINET commended the federal government for settling the long-standing contractual dispute with a foreign investor group in the steel industry, by securing a reduction of the blackmailing claim of the sum of $5.258 billion to $496 million “owing to the mistake which was made by the government by dashing away Delta Steel Company which was one of her best national steel heritage to a foreign investor without any success story till date, thereby laying fallow.
“Delta Steel Company which is supposed to generate employment opportunities for Nigerians and create more economic fortunes to entrepreneurs is still left redundant even after many years of its outright sale-off.”