On Monday, demonstrators marched through the streets of Kaduna, Nigeria’s capital city, under the aegis of Partners for National Economic Progress (PANEP), to demand that President Bola Tinubu stand down from what they termed “economic sabotage.”
The protesters demanded that local production be prioritized and that practices that they felt would harm national development be carried out on placards with the slogans “Support Local Refining,” “Crush Economic Saboteurs,” and “Protect Dangote Refinery.”
alleged Sabotage
Igwe Ude-Umanta and Dahiru Maishanu, the leaders of PANEP, claimed the protest was intended to draw attention to what they termed the “powerful interests”‘s activities, which are allegedly opposing Nigeria’s petroleum refining independence.
It’s about Nigeria’s economic survival, not just Dangote alone. Mr. President must rise up and overthrow those who are abusing our nation’s effort to become self-sufficient in the refining industry,” Ude-Umanta said.
According to him, the demonstration, which is themed “National Unity Against Sabotage: Reclaiming Our Petroleum Sector for the People,” is a part of a nationwide campaign to fight local refineries, which he claimed keep the nation a dependent on imported fuel.
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Further, Ude-Umanta claimed that some oil unions and importers were “colluding with foreign interests,” retaliating against the Dangote Refinery’s operations and threatening to turn away future investors.
No investor will ever bring money to Dangote Refinery again, he claimed.
He also accused the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) of “economic sabotage,” alleging that its recent actions had hampered refinery operations.
Ude-Umanta remarked, “What PENGASSAN did was sabotage, not unionism,” and that it was sabotage.
“To deter others, the Federal Government should have arrested their leaders. No one should “hide” to commit crimes against the economy under the guise of labor activism, he continued.
At the time of the report, PENGASSAN had not yet responded in public to the accusations.
Ude-Umanta made a further appeal to the President, who also serves as the minister of petroleum resources, to ensure that local refineries, including Dangote’s, receive crude oil at the same price as foreign refineries to maintain operations and increase investor confidence.
The group also praised Dangote Refinery for its reportedly beginning to decline prices for Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) for what it described as a positive impact on domestic fuel supply.
Source: Channels TV
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