Reps allege dirty dealings in plan to concession Ajaokuta steel firm
•Fayemi, Bwari avoid sectoral debate
SPEAKER of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, yesterday accused the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and the Minister of State, Abubakar Bawa Bwari, of spearheading the move to concession Ajaokuta Steel Company at a giveaway price to achieve selfish desires.
Dogara’s position was prompted by the alleged refusal by the duo to appear before the House today to shed light on the reasons for non-completion of the steel complex, the concession of which does not go down well with the lawmakers.
Fayemi and Bwari, in their letter signed by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr. Abdulkadir Muazu, said they would not be available to interface with the lawmakers because they were slated to attend other official engagements. “The minister has prior diplomatic schedule engagement in preparation for the focal labs of ERGP relating to the mining sector while the minister of state will be leading the ministry’s delegation to Canada to attend the PDAC conference,” the letter read.
But piqued by the development, Dogara, in his response dated February 28, said the conduct of the ministers spoke volume of the fact that there must be dirty dealings in the plan to concession the steel complex.
In a statement, his Chief of Staff, Mr. Jerry Manwe, said: “I am further directed to respectfully state that the House considers the attendance of one of the ministers in the ministry of crucial importance to its legislative intervention in the steel sector to ensure timely completion of the Ajaokuta steel plant, and consequently requests you to reconsider the apparent boycott of the House’s sectoral debate. “We think that the debate presents an opportunity for the ministry to debunk the widespread allegation that the proposed concessionaires have tied the hands of the ministry.
“We are worried that the apparent boycott of the session by your ministry can only lend credence to the allegations that the top echelon of your ministry are deeply conflicted in the matter.”