The Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) Atiku Abubakar has come under fire from the federal government for vowing to address every issue preventing the Ajaokuta Steel Plant in Kogi State from being completed.
If elected president, Atiku, who served as vice president under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, has pledged to address the issues affecting the Ajaokuta Steel Company.
Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the minister of communications and culture, said Atiku was part of the issue that impeded the development of Ajaokuta and that the Muhammadu Buhari administration has essentially resolved yesterday at the 19th Edition of the “PMB Administration Scorecard Series (2015-2023).”
“This is a dishonest remark created out of thirst for power,” he continued. A little background information will demonstrate that the former vice president lied to Nigerians when he made the commitment.
“In 2004, the administration of the time’s president, Olusegun Obasanjo, granted Global Steel Industry a concession regarding Ajaokuta. Who was in charge of the privatization program under that administration? Atiku Abubakar, Alhaji Another PDP administration canceled that concession, which ended up being a fiasco, he claimed.
After the unsuccessful concession, according to Mohammed, the concessionaire, Global Steel Industry, sued Nigeria in court, seeking $7 billion. The lawsuit dragged on for 12 years before President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration intervened, and the firm ultimately settled for $496 million.
According to him, the current administration promised to pay the remaining money in five installments after making a lump sum payment of $250 million.
Out of the $496 million, he claimed that the federal government has so far paid a total of $446 million.
“We will complete the $50 million last payment due next month, and Ajaokuta will entirely revert to us, ending the dishonorable and futile concession by the Administration in which Alhaji Atiku Abubakar served as the Vice President,” the statement reads.
The federal government is now in discussions with investors, he said.
He stated, “Right now, we are speaking with investors who are prepared to bring their funds to Ajaokuta to ensure that it is successful. When the honorable minister of mines and steel development visited this area last month, he gave the assurance that Ajaokuta would be granted a concession under what he described as fair terms before this Administration left office.
What I’m basically arguing is that the concession made by the administration in which Alhaji Atiku served as vice president and was in charge of the disastrous privatization program was to blame for the issues facing Ajaokuta.
He emphasized that if the former vice president had a plan to address the Ajaokuta problem but didn’t carry it out in 2004, why should Nigerians believe that he will do so in 2023, nearly 20 years from now?
As a result, he claimed that the former vice president is ignorant about Ajaokuta’s current situation, the agreement reached with the concessionaire, and the payments made. How does he intend to resurrect the steel company in the absence of this knowledge? Snake oil merchants who use deception to con Nigerians should be avoided, the man advised.
He claimed that the same individuals who halted the growth of the nation’s steel sector by making a dubious concession do not hold the key to the solution to the Ajaokuta crisis.
“Beware, Nigerians! Don’t let yourself fall for the same scam twice, he advised.
