By Ismaila Chafe
President Muhammadu Buhari says the Ajaokuta Steel Complex will generate $1.6billion annually and provide 500,000 estimated jobs.
Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s spokesman in a statement, said the President revealed this on Thursday in the Palace of the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland in Okene, which he also inaugurated as part of his one-day State Visit to the Kogi.
President Buhari also pledged the determination of his administration to position Kogi State as an industrial hub as well as a Solid Minerals power base.
He explained how the Federal Government achieved the resolution of all legal entanglements that had bogged down the progress of the Ajaokuta Steel Complex.
According to him, the project stands to benefit the people of the State immensely.
“No other single project holds the key to unlocking this vast potential as much as the Ajaokuta Steel Complex which we inherited as a long moribund complex strangulating under a tangle of local and international commercial disputes.
“I am glad to report that, as we begin to roundoff in office, we can genuinely say that our administration has rescued Ajaokuta from all legal disabilities.
“It is now ready for concessioning to a private investor with the right profiles to put it to work for Nigeria in general and Kogi State in particular.
“The process has cost this Federal Government over $400million so far, but I consider it money well spent as we move closer to achieving our objective of transforming Kogi State into Nigeria’s iron and steel powerhouse.
“The benefits of getting Ajaokuta Steel Complex working again are numerous.
“It will provide over 500,000 estimated jobs and more than $1.6billion in annual income to the Nigerian economy.
“Nigerians can rest assured that I remain committed to seeing this process to a logical conclusion before the end of my tenure in Office.”
According to him, Kogi State also stands to benefit in diverse ways when the 614 km (384 mile) AKK gas pipeline, which traverses the State, starts operations next year.
He also affirmed that the All Progressives Congress (APC) had delivered on the promises it made to Nigerians at all levels.
He maintained that Gov. Yahaya Bello had performed creditably in his two terms as governor.
“We are an administration that prides ourselves in the fulfillment of our electoral promises to the Nigerian people, at both national and sub-national levels.
“This is why I am glad that we have an impressive array of legacy projects through your own State Government as proof of our stewardship in Kogi State.
“The APC Administration has indelible footprints in Kogi State.”
The President cited some of the many projects executed by the Federal Government in Kogi to include the Itakpe to Okene bypass, the Obajana to Kabba concrete road and the Itakpe to Warri railway service, among others.
The Obajana to Kabba concrete road was built by Dangote Industries Limited under ‘roads for taxes initiative’ (Executive Order 7).
“I am very pleased to be here today to commission several projects executed by the administration of His Excellency, Gov. Yahaya Bello.”
He commended the governor for rising to the occasion in many sectors, especially security.
“We are proud of him and I encourage the people of Kogi State to continue to support him and his team as they are working hard to ensure peace, security and development in the State.”
Projects inaugurated by President Buhari include:
The Reference Hospital Okene which boasts of the first ever hyperbaric treatment chamber in Nigeria and the fleet of ambulances attached to it;
The new Ohinoyi’s Palace in Okene; the Ganaja Junction Flyover and interchange in Lokoja; the GYB Model Science Secondary School, Adankolo, Lokoja;
The Muhammadu Buhari Square (Civic Centre) in Lokoja and a fleet of high-tech security vehicles to combat crimes and criminalities were also inaugurated by the President.
Earlier, in his welcome address, Gov. Yahaya Bello thanked the President for showing leadership and for the various programmes and interventions that had positively impacted the State and her people.
These, the governor said, included the Itakpe–Warri Rail Line which, he noted, had brought relief to travellers and business owners in the State.
He informed the President that the projects inaugurated were in response to his commitment to serve.
He said that his administration, after his swearing-in on 27th January, 2016, constituted a multi-sectoral committee that went round the nooks and crannies of the State to identify the needs of the people.
“This document has been our guide.”
The governor, while acknowledging the commitment of President Buhari to the resuscitation of the Ajaokuta Steel Complex, thanked him for his unrelenting interest in the project.
Bello also said that his administration had a cordial relationship with the traditional institution in the State and that the Ohinoyi’s new Palace being commissioned by President Buhari was a testimony to this.
Earlier, the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, Dr Ibrahim Ado represented by the Ohi of Okengwe, Alhaji Mohammed Anage, on behalf of the traditional rulers of the Central Senatorial Zone of the State, thanked President Buhari for his support to Bello’s administration.
The Ohinoyi also commended President Buhari for being the first sitting President of Nigeria to pay a working visit to Kogi State.
