The House of Representatives has called on President Bola Tinubu to suspend the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed until his comments regarding the status of Dangote Refinery products have been investigated.
This comes after a motion of urgent public importance was adopted by Esosa Iyawe following the House’s address of the conflict between the Refinery and the Authority.
According to Iyawe, the fuel quality can impact engine hardware, thus ultra-low sulfur diesel is recommended for all types of companies, power plants, storage tanks, industrial facilities, fleets, heavy equipment, and even ships, as high Sulphur content in fuels, causes damage to engines and contributes to air pollution.
Iyawe also said Sulphur dioxide has a severe impact on the environment, which could lead to damage to the human respiratory system, causing health issues, and in some cases, even cancer.
“The unguarded statements by the Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, which has since been disproved, sparked an outrage from Nigerians who tagged his undermining of local refineries and insistence on the continued importation of fuel an act of economic sabotage, as the imported products have been shown to contain high levels of dangerous compounds.”
This comes after the House Committee on Midstream and Downstream on Monday commenced an investigation into the dispute between Ahmed and the Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote.
In the past four days, Ahmed’s statement that Dangote Refinery’s products were inferior had sparked a wide range of allegations and counter-allegations from both parties.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Petroleum Resources(Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri on Monday, July 22, moved to resolve the crisis between NMDPRA and Dangote Refinery.
