• Queries source of money N’Assembly members shared for Christmas
From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
A chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) and former deputy national publicity secretary, Yekini Nabena, has urged President Bola Tinubu to approve the relocation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to the Niger Delta region.
Nabena said to justify the plot to move some departments of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) out of the Federal Capital Territory, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development should also be moved to Benue State where agricultural produce are in abundance.
The Federal Government recently confirmed readiness to move part of CBN and FAAN to Lagos State for efficiency of their activities. The development has, however, generated lot of debates in support and against, especially by the northern elite and leaders.
Reacting to the development, Nabena said he suspects evil intention for making such move, adding that President Tinubu did not believe in one Nigeria before his emergence.
Nabena, making reference to an interview President Tinubu granted and published on April 11, 1997, entitled: ‘I don’t believe in one Nigeria – Tinubu,’ said the presidency must come out clear on the real reasons for the relocation of the two affected agencies and not give flimsy excuses so far.
He warned that federal agencies are symbols of Nigerian unity and should not be played with, saying: “If efficiency of these agencies is the main reason for plan to relocate them to Lagos State, we, from the Niger Delta, are also asking that the NNPCL, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, Nigerian Ports Authority and others will be more effective in either Bayelsa, Rivers or Delta states.
“In the same vein, Federal Ministry of Mine and Steal should be moved to Kogi State where we have the Ajaokuta Steal for efficiency. I also believe the Ministry of Trade and Investment should either be relocated to Kano or Anambra states where trade is done in high proportion. Also, Ministry of Agriculture should be taken to Benue State, the food basket of the nation.”
According to Nabena, the issue of oil companies relocating to the oil-producing Niger Delta region had been debated severally in the Senate with the companies not heeding to the calls.
“The Senate had asked International Oil Companies to relocate their headquarters to the Niger Delta region to fast-track the host communities economic development but some powerful interests in Lagos are preventing this for their selfish interests,” Nabena noted.
The former APC deputy spokesperson also expressed shock why the National Assembly should keep quiet over some developments ongoing in the country, adding that the leadership of the 10th Assembly must tell Nigerian public where the Christmas money they shared came from.
He said: “Nigeria is been looted within six months of this government and the National Assembly is keeping quiet as if nothing is happening. The National Assembly has not seen anything wrong in the ongoing well-reported Betta Edu scandal where billions of our patrimony is been played with.
“This National Assembly must also tell Nigerians the source of money and bags of rice they shared for Christmas if it was budgeted for or not, we deserve to know,” he said in the statement issued in Abuja.