The presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in the 2023 elections, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has said the federal government should see to the success of the Dangote refinery project.
The refinery has recently been in the news after the chairman of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, talked about alleged plans to sabotage its operations.
On June 4, the business mogul claimed that some international oil companies (IOCs) were struggling to supply crude to the refinery.
And on July 15, the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe, labelled the claim as “erroneous,” saying that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) has provisions that guide willing buyer-willing seller transactions.
On July 18, the CEO of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, stated that local refineries, including the Dangote refinery, were producing substandard products compared to the ones imported.
Dangote had been accused of monopoly by the oil regulator.
On July 20, Dangote discredited claims that petroleum products from his refinery are inferior.
On Sunday, the business tycoon expressed readiness to sell the oil refinery to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited.
On Monday, the house of representatives started an investigation into all of the allegations.
Reacting to the development through a post published on his X page on Wednesday, Kwankwaso described the recent controversy surrounding the Dangote refinery’s integrity as an “unnecessary fuss”.
He said the federal government must show fairness towards monumental project of that magnitude.
“I was privileged to visit the magnificent Dangote Refinery, and I was marvelled by the sheer commitment that went into the quality of its establishment,” he wrote.
“This 650,000-bpd refinery is essential for our energy needs and economic stability, and it must be protected from all forms of threat.
“The creation of unnecessary fuss around its integrity by some vested interests is very unfortunate, and it stands to undo all the years of hard work to maintain the fragile investor confidence in our economy.
“It’s time for us to rally around this national asset to ensure that the monumental project does not fail. It cannot fail, and the Nigerian government must understand this by demonstrating fairness and confidence in both domestic and foreign critical investments.”