Governors of the 36 states of the federation have condemned Nigeria’s continued dependence on the importation of petroleum to meet its local demands of fuel consumption.
The Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, who spoke to newsmen on behalf of his colleagues after the meeting of the Governors, which also had in attendance the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, said it is an aberration for Nigeria as an oil-producing country to be importing fuel.
The Governors called for the repair of the refineries in the country to make petroleum products more available and affordable to Nigerians and alleviate the suffering in the land.
They also called for support for Dangote Refinery.
Uzodinma said, “We must encourage the homegrown solution that the President just introduced; encouraging Dangote Refinery. We should repair our Port Harcourt Refinery, repair our Warri Refinery, repair our Kaduna Refinery, and then produce what we eat, and eat what we produce.
“We shouldn’t rely on importation of crude oil. For me, it is an aberration in the first place, to rely on importation of petroleum products as an oil producing country, while other members of OPEC of our status are now refining crude oil in that country.”
The Governors supported the move to purchase petroleum products in naira, adding that local refining of petroleum products would open an avalanche of opportunities for the citizens and boost the country’s economy through employment and other benefits.
“If you refine petroleum products locally, you will cure jobs, you will cure unemployment, you will keep people busy, you will reduce crime, and then you will also be proud to answer an oil producing nation,” he said.
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