AP Sales: Time for Yar'Adua and National Assembly to Act

By

Hajiya Hafsat M. Zanna

musahafsat@yahoo.com

 

 

It is no longer news for Nigerians to see and hear that their former civilian dictator, Olusegun Obasanjo has bastardized almost all the good things of life provided by his predecessors, including our colonial masters. Nigerians have never had it so bad than they had it during the eight years of Obasanjo’s tyrannical ruler ship.

 

One of the worst policies that seem to be self centred and anti people is the fact that Nigerians’ assets were sold at give away to private and corporate concerns under the guise of privatizing inefficient government owned enterprises. It is the view of most Nigerians is that the exercise was nothing but a rip-off. Others see it as the personalization of state owned companies by a few friends of the powers that be.

 

However, in his usual patronage of his business and political associates, Obasanjo also sold African Petroleum, AP to his number one business stooge, Femi Otedola’s Zenon Oil at a give away. According to experts and other interested Nigerians, the controversial sale of AP by the NNPC and not even Bureau of Public Enterprises, BPE have questioned the hurried transaction like a phoenix from the ashes and thus throwing up more questions and condemnation from all Nigerians and stakeholders.

 

Mallam Muhktar Muhktar, Chairman of  Shareholders Trustees Association in an interview in Lagos recently condemned the sale in its entirety insisting that he sold it to himself (Obasanjo), describing it as ‘one of the greatest corrupt acts Obasanjo has done in eight years as President’.  Muhktar further alleged that Zenon Oil and its owner, Femi Otedola have been executing deals at the NNPC on behalf Obasanjo. One now begins to see the wisdom of Obasanjo being the country’s Oil Minister through out his eight years tenure as President. I am confident that more of Obasanjo’s deals will be exposed should Yar’adua commence full investigations into the activities since 1999.

 

AP was first sold to Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim’s Global Fleet Group at the cost of N17.5billion. But in his usual dictatorial style, Obasanjo overruled the transaction and single handedly offered the prime shares for N17billion. The sold 28.7% shares of the federal government in AP sold to Global Fleet at the first instance are according to experts far below its current value.  NNPC had in 2005 acquired AP in a N10 billion debt swap arrangement.

 

 The government had earlier in 2001 sold its 30% stake to Peter Okocha’s Sadiq Petroleum but Sadiq Petroleum decided to sell its stake to a unit of Afribank Plc, Assets management company limited, ASSEMAL after accusing the BPE of concealing debts worth N26billion. Also, the Chairman of the Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Boniface Okezie described the transaction as fraudulent explaining that it would send the wrong signals to the international community as Nigerians would be seen as dubious. Okezie even went as far as advising the new investor, ZENON to keep off all AP property or else all shareholders of the company will rest any attempt to take over the company.

 

 It is important to once more state the obvious fact that Peter Okocha was denied the ownership of AP simply because Obasanjo had suddenly realized that he is his Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s friend.

 

  One needs to affirm that former President Obasanjo, NNPC and other agencies of government are not alone in the mess called the sale of AP. The Nigeria Stock Exchange, NSE will also be severally responsible because it has from all indications derailed from transparency by not allowing the shares to go to existing shareholders.

 

  It is again a fact that the fortunes of AP began to decline shortly after the 30% government equity was sold to Sadiq Petroleum, the country’s fuel market was dominated by a handful of multinational and local retailers including AP.

 

Even the President Managing Director of AP, Zira Maigadi has spoken of the high potentials of the company therefore making the claim of ‘being a moribund enterprise’ as false. Speaking at the company’s ‘facts behind the figures’ in Lagos, Maigadi noted that the company’s strategic initiatives has resulted in its profitability and huge investments in its infrastructure and state of the art service delivery equipment.

 

It is therefore significant to note that even the national assembly has through a group of federal legislators cried out aloud against the sale of the AP and called for an immediate reversal of the sale in national interest.

 

The group led by Honourable Halims Agoda has called on President Yar’adua to cancel the sales because ‘due process was not followed ‘in its privatization by the bureau of public enterprises under former President Obasanjo. I also join the group in not only condemning the sale but in urging President Yar’adua to as quickly as possible reverse it in the interest of the Nigerian public.

 

HAJIYA HAFSAT M. ZANNA

BORNO STATE