Atedo Peterside asks FG to sell PH refinery to private investors, condemns $1.5 billion repair
The founder of Stanbic IBTC and Anap Foundation, Atedo Peterside, has urged the Federal Government to sell Port Harcourt refinery to private investors.
He also said the $1.5 billion to be spent on rehabilitating the refinery can build 12 world-class hospitals.
“The $1.5bn earmarked for PH Refinery Rehabilitation by #NNPC could build 12 world class hospitals costing $125m each – 2 in each geopolitical zone. We could then allow private sector core investors to purchase the refinery and rehabilitate it with their own funds @officialNESG,” he wrote via his Twitter handle on Thursday.
His reaction comes bareby a week after the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, announced the plan of the Federal Government to seek loans for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery.
The minister said only a fraction of the $1.5 billion earmarked will come as a loan from the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), hence it won’t add significantly to the public debt which currently stands at N32.9 trillion.
This was, however, opposed by Mr Perterside on Thursday.
Some other Nigerians on social media also supported the position of Mr Peterside to build 12 world-class hospitals.
A Twitter user, @Olajideobe said “I’ll suggest just one world class hospital be built in each geopolitical zone, & the remaining money should be used to upgrade & equip all the primary health centres in these zones. Unfortunately, they won’t accept this proposal because there won’t be much in it for them”
@bber moto tweeted saying “Totally in support of your recommendations but might go just like DISCOs & GENCOs that the government is still funding indirectly thru NBET. Not to mention ALSCON, Ajaokuta Steel, Delta Steel, Itakpe Mining etc that we hear that their assets have been striped off by investors.”
President Muhammadu Buhari repeated travels to the United Kingdom for medical check up explained the poor state of health system in Nigeria.
