The Nigerian Union of Mine Workers has called on the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development to ‘thread with caution in the ongoing privatisation of Ajaokuta Steel Company and the National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO), Itakpe,’ alleging that the process is flawed and must be reviewed by the incoming administration to ascertain its credibility and conformity with extant laws.
‘All actions of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development (MMSD) and the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) should be painstakingly reviewed by the in-coming Administration as we are not sure of whose interest the Ministry is serving,” the Union said in a statement, on Wednesday.
The statement, which was signed by the Executive National President of the Union, Comr. Hamza Mohammed, titled ‘Ajaokuta Steel Plant and National Iron Ore Mining Company, Itakpe Concession – This rush will crash the train,’ called on President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently intervene in what it described as a hasty attempt to privatize ASCO and NIOMCO.
The Union made reference to advertisements in ThisDay and Punch Newspapers of 21st April, 2023 in which the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), called for bids from organizations interested in investing in Ajaokuta Steel Plant and the National Iron Ore Mining Company on a Public Private Partnership model.
The statement said: ‘This present government is in Transition Mode, and has about 33 Days to hand-over to a new Administration. What it could not do in eight (8) years, should not be hurriedly and improperly done in less than 30 days.’
‘Mr. President should urgently intervene; his good name is being soiled, as it is bandied around that everything done is directed by him.’
‘It is easy to recall that in a rush to inject private hands in the Ajaokuta Steel Plant and National Iron Ore Mining Company, the Federal Government in 2003 hurriedly signed a 10-year concession agreement with Solgas Energy of USA.
‘This concession only lasted for a little more than one year, with Solgas throwing in the towel due to lack of capacity.’
‘In 2005, another 10-year concession agreement was hurriedly entered into with Global Steel Holdings owned by Mr. Pramod Mittal without due diligence by the relevant Government Agencies.
‘The concession agreements were solely handled and messed up by the same Ministry of Mines and Steel Development with unverified claims that it was a directive from the then President Obasanjo.
‘Following the inauguration of the Late President Musa Yar’adua’s Government, and the complaints of Nigerians, the agreement was reviewed by the Engr. Inuwa Magaji Commission of Inquiry. The outcome of that inquiry led to the Government terminating the second Concession agreement.
The Union recalled that ‘the consequences of the triple actions of hurried privatization, lack of due diligence and the actions of the new government resulted in Nigeria paying over $400,000,000 USD to GINL as an out of Court settlement through a process that lasted 15 years.’
The Union advised the Arc. Olamilekan Adegbite – led management of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development thread with caution, stating that ‘the ministry is treading the same old path again with the current efforts, and this time around, the processes are not only haphazard but against the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.’
‘The process should follow the due processes in line with the laws of the country.’
Stressing the importance of adhering to laid down rules in the privatization of ASCO and NIOMCO, the Union said: ‘No law should be circumvented, as doing so would demean National Pride and Nationhood,’ stating that ‘the six-week threshold stipulated by law be the ground rule and must be respected and adhered to.’
According to the Union, the hurried privatization process ‘contravenes extant rules and laws of the federation, and is the basis for litigations in the future.
Discussing how the process contravenes the law, the Union explained that the process advertisement for public procurement falls short of the stipulated six weeks.
‘Section 68 of the Finance Act 2020 which clearly amended Section 25, Sub Section (2) (a) and (b) of the Public Procurement Act, 2007 states that advertisements for Parastatals and Ministerial Tenders should not be less than four (4) weeks from the date of publication if the process is within the thresh-hold of the Ministry. If however it would require the consideration and approval of the Federal Executive Council, the time line is six (6) weeks.’
‘We want to put it on record that this very process falls within the threshold of the six (6) weeks provision, and not four (4) weeks contemplated in the Advertisement,’ the Union said, adding that ‘sections 2 to 5 of the ICRC Act confirm our observation above and is strengthened by Sections 55 and 56 of the Public Procurement Act, 2007 on disposal of Public Assets.
‘While the Nigerian Union of Mines Workers is not against private investments in the steel sector, we will not hesitate to draw the attention of the Federal Government and indeed Nigerians to the rush and speed of the process as it might put the two companies back into the same mess that President Muhammadu Buhari tried hard to bring them out of.’
The Union called for the inclusion of the steel sector workforce in the decision-making process, saying that the ‘status of the workforce must be clearly defined within the context of the process.’
‘No investment can thrive without the input of the workers. The past processes, which all failed, did not take into consideration the welfare of the workers and their opinion.’
‘All issues of remuneration, severance and condition of service should be part of the process,’ adding in order to ensure openness and transparency, the leadership of labour should be integrated in the process as observers or members of the review team.
While saying that the Steel Sector is a critical sector with well-trained members of the Nigerian Union of Mine Workers who received specialized training across the world, the Union noted that whosoever becomes the preferred bidder would need the services and expertise of its members.
Prior to the advertisement no effort was made to engage and intimate the workers or their representatives.
The Union said: ‘The Ministry pretends that workers are non-existent or do not matter at all. We find this strange and regard it as an avoidable error.’
According to the association, past attempts to inject private interest in the Steel Plant and Itakpe suffered great setbacks because staff were retrenched without any agreed or proper procedure, and several are still suffering.
“We would not accept the same in this dispensation because we believe that President Muhammadu Buhari is a humane and considerate leader who cares about the people he leads.
‘We have no objection to any privatization or PPP arrangement the government chooses to embrace, but we object to the haphazard way the process is being handled by the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.
While saying that ‘no serious government will leave its steel sector undeveloped,’ the Union argued that some challenges suffered by Nigerians in diaspora especially the youth are results of failure of government to develop the steel industries, which has led to large scale lack of jobs in the country, and also mass exodus of young Nigerian intellectuals who need to go and search for means of livelihood abroad.’
‘This is one of the several reasons why the Federal Government must exercise political will needed to resuscitate the steel sector,’ the statement added.
