The Nigerian government has been advised to utilise the Ajaokuta Steel Company to augment the COVID-19 oxygen centres in the 36 states of the federation. This will reduce wastage
Mohammed Bougei Attah, a procurement expert offered the advice in reaction to the approval of a whopping sum of ₦836m by the Federal Executive Council, FEC on Wednesday September 22, 2021 to support the 36 States and the FCT COVID 19 Oxygen Plants.
Mr. Attah who is the Project Director of NGO Network and Secretary of the National Planning Committee for the upcoming National Conference on ASCL said “there’s no need for the Federal Government to establish oxygen plants in all the 36 States again since Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited (ASCL) has the capacity to meet the oxygen demand of the States”.
He said it would amount to waste of resources to invest in another project of this magnitude, having spent over ₦ 5.6 billion in June for the 36 States and the FCT. He said Ajaokuta can effectively produce the oxygen for States.
Attah said that the initial take-off grant to each State from the above sum and approval of about ₦ 1bn is far above what ASCL needs to provide the oxygen.
” Ajaokuta Steel Plant is well equipped with the machinery and manpower to produce this oxygen at very low cost to the Government.
A visit to the Steel Plant in June this year revealed that with about ₦ 631.5m naira as completion estimate of the Ajaokuta Oxygen Plant, over ₦ 20bn can be generated as revenue to government every year”, Attah said.
He therefore advised the government to reduce wastages on building new plants and concentrate on reviving the moribund industries across the country that can fill the gaps of revenue in many sectors of the country.