Nigerian journalist and Arise Television anchor Rufai Oseni said Monday that credit for the Dangote Refinery should go to former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Central Bank of Nigeria governor Godwin Emefiele, not to President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Oseni spoke on “The Morning Show” in response to Nigeria Revenue Service Chairman Zacch Adedeji, who said on Channels Television’s “Sunday Politics” program that the Tinubu administration had increased government revenue and that the Dangote Refinery was contributing to local fuel supply.
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Credit for refinery
He said the refinery was largely enabled by policies and economic conditions under Buhari, particularly the relative stability of the naira during Emefiele’s tenure as central bank governor.
“When they try to say Dangote Refinery is a product of this administration? It’s not a product of this administration,” Oseni said. “It was the same Buhari administration that kept Naira stable, and the Emefiele they call names today was the one that kept Naira stable so that Dangote would be able to build that refinery.”
Crude supply commitments
Oseni said the government failed to meet some of the crude supply commitments it made to the Dangote Refinery. “Do you know that Dangote still has to go and buy Nigerian crude on the international market and bring it back?” Oseni asked.
Economic impact
Journalist, Rufai Oseni acknowledged the Tinubu administration had recorded some economic gains but said the government must also account for the effect of its policies on Nigerians and businesses. “Yes, it got some wins.
I mean, we don’t shy away from that, but also the debilitating effect of what was done on the economy is something we’ve not recovered from,” he said. He cited a corporate sector shock of more than 3 trillion naira in foreign exchange problems alone and a GDP shock of over $100 billion, and he questioned whether officials could measure the cost borne by ordinary Nigerians. “The individual cost on the lives of people that you and I are both paying, can they bring out that cost?” Oseni asked.
