Director General of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadiri, has called on the Federal Government to sell or privatize Warri, Port Harcourt and other country’s state-owned refineries.
This was as he describes them as a pure drain on the Nigerian economy.
Ajayi-Kadiri, who made this call on Tuesday, when he appeared as a guest on ‘Politics Today’, a programme on Channels Television, argued that the government should hand them over to the private sector for efficient management and productivity.
“If you ask me, the government should just sell these refineries. Give them to private sector people who will run them efficiently and be able to deliver. When something belongs to everybody, it belongs to nobody,” Ajayi-Kadiri
It will be recalled that the federal government began efforts in 2024 to revive its four state-owned refineries, with the old Port Harcourt and Warri refineries partially restored, while rehabilitation continues on the second Port Harcourt unit and the Kaduna refinery.
The MAN DG, however, decried that the continued government ownership of the facilities has not only proven ineffective but also unfair to the Nigerian people, particularly in a country brimming with capable entrepreneurs.
“Those four refineries are a pure drain on the Nigerian economy, and it is not fair to the Nigerian people.
“We should have a situation where we are able to speak truth to ourselves and encourage private sector investment,” he added.
