Experts in the country under the umbrella of the Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN) on Thursday charged the Federal Government to put on hold the planned concession of the Ajaokuta Steel Company until it is fully functional.
Similarly, APBN expressed support for the House of Representatives resolve to probe the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development on the planned concession of the Federal Government owned steel company.
The President of APBN, Dr Idris Omede, who said in Akure, Ondo State capital at the Presidential Retreat of the association, said past privatisation of government companies had not yielded any positive results.
The retreat, which, which was attended by delegates of 30 professional association that made up the APBN, has a theme "Repositioning The APBN: Strategies For Collaboration of Professional Bodies".
"The recent expositions and revelations by a patriotic female Nigerian lawyer, before the National Assembly on wrong handling in Ajaokuta Steel Company, since its establishment and recommendation to right the wrongs and the overt zeal of members of the National Assembly, particularly the House of Representatives to address this is applauded.
"We encourage and plead with the National Assembly to address the issues promptly and adequately for the Executive arm attention", Omede stated.
Earlier, Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu represented by his Special Adviser on Public Utilities, Mr Tunji Light-Ariyo, had said his administration would continue to partner professionals in the implementation of policies and execution of projects.
Akeredolu said the proposed new land use charge in the state had been suspended to give room for negotiations with stakeholders.
Omede said the matter which was already before the National Assembly must not be swept under the carpet for any reason.
He said the Executive arm of Government must be fair, just and up in toeing the part of honor to give Nigeria the Steel Company as a government concern primarily.
"If Ajaokuta Steel is well harnessed and put into use, a lot of jobs will be created for many citizens", he said.
The APBN President said many previous privatisation efforts of the government did not work due to faulty processes
Specifically, Omede said the privatisation of the power sector has not yielded the desired results as there had not been any significant increase in the power sector.
He said though, professionals had advised Federal Government on the state of Ajaokuta Steel Company had not yielded results.
Omede said the current effort should be pushed with vigour and sense of patriotism in view of the importance of the steel sector to the economic development of any country.
