Imo stateowned Adapalm revitalisation suffers setback on lack of funds

GODDY ESOM OBODO, general manager, Adapalm Nigeria Limited, owned and managed by Imo State government representatives and located at Ohaji/ Egbema local government area, has disclosed that the state government was yet to inject funds to reinvegorate the oil palm milling industry in the state.

Obodo, a former member of the Imo State House of Assermbly, who was appointed in May 2020 to oversee the affairs of Adapalm, said that he has neither received any allocation nor subvention from the Imo State government to run the affairs of the company except funds for the payment of salaries of the staff.

The Adapalm boss told members of Niger Delta Media Forum (NDMF) during an interaction in his office that the funds generated from the industry have always been used for the day-to-day maintenance of the establishment.

The former commissioner for commerce and industry, disclosed that the industry had entered into partnership with some agencies for the purpose of actualizing its targets .While he was specific on funding as a major and topmost challenge already bedevilling the success of the industry, Obodo also harped on the need for the firm to establish a new mill that has the required production capacity of 30 tonnes and above per hour.

He said the package for a new mill has already been completed, but they were looking forward for the funds to actualize it in the end.

The general manager asserted that for Adapalm, which was established in 1963 by the late Michael Okpara, the then premier of the Eastern Region, to come back to life and thrive as expected, as another major source of revenue for government to beef up the internally genersted revenue(IGR) , the plantation and the mill should be looked into properly .

Obodo informed that the management was planning to uproot all the abandoned palms trees planted by the expatriates who were the former managers of the industry.