An anti corruption civil society organisation under the aegis of the Movement for Anti-Corruption, Integrity, and Transparency Initiative has described the recent statement by former president, Olusegun Obasanjo against state-owned refineries and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), as a distraction, stating that the newly formed Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), should be encouraged to function effectively.
The CSO stated this in a statement jointly signed by its national president, Comrade Goodway Jackson, and secretary general, Comrade Mohammed Kuda, and made available to journalists in Abuja, on Sunday.
The group said the former president’s statements were not out of love for the country but due to the reversal of the sales of part of the Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries that were reversed by late president Umaru Musa Yar Adua.
It would be recalled that legal luminary, Femi Falana had also in a statement he issued on Friday, said the Port Harcourt was sold by Obasanjo to a consortium, however, Late president Umaru Musa Yar’Adua having found out that the deal was never in the best interest of the country reversed it.
According to Falana, a 51 per cent stake in the Port Harcourt Refinery was sold for $561 million, and, another 51 per cent of Kaduna Refinery was also sold for $160 million on May 28, 2007.
The group insisted that the outburst by the former president was not out of patriotism, but from an age-long anger and grudge against the NNPCL.
The CSO quoted Femi Falana’ reaction to the former president’s outbursts where he said: “It is due to the personal vendetta he holds against the state refineries because after he (Obasanjo) left office, late President Yar’Adua who took over from him, reversed the sale of the Port Harcourt Refinery to a consortium, having seen that its sale was shrouded in controversy.”
“To many, former President Obasanjo’s recent outburst on State Refineries may not, after all, be because he means well for the well-being of the nation’s refineries but due to an age-long grudge he holds against NNPCL soon after he left office as president,” it further added.
