The Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) in Ondo State says the $50 billion refinery and free trade zone project announced by the state government, is a media illusion aimed at deceiving the public.
The party in a statement by its Director of Media and Public Communications, Wándé T. Àjàyí, on Wednesday in Akure, described the “Mega Refinery” as masterclass in make-believe.
Thefrontrank reports that a statement by Ebenezer Adeniyan, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, on Wednesday announced that Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa-led administration had formalised a $50 billion investment agreement with an international consortium under the Sunshine Infrastructure Joint Venture (JV) to position the state as a major industrial hub in Nigeria.
According to the statement, the deal involves global partners such as Backbone Infrastructure, MJ Care Investment Finance, China Harbour and Honeywell OUP, under the Sunshine Infrastructure Joint Venture.
“The Joint Venture had secured over $50 billion for the development of a 500,000-barrels-per-day refinery and a 1,471-hectare sunshine free trade zone in Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo state.
“The funding followed the successful execution of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Joint Venture and the state government through the Ondo State Investment Promotion Agency (ONDIPA),” the statement stated.
However, PDP said that the announcement shows that the government has “mastered the act” of conjuring figures that dazzle the eyes and insult the intelligence of the people.
The statement read: “The Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) in Ondo State wishes to address the people of our dear State on what has now become a recurring spectacle of illusion, the so-called $50 billion refinery and free trade zone project announced by the Aiyedatiwa administration.
“When next you hear that Ondo State has secured a fifty billion dollar investment, take a deep breath and remember that arithmetic is not witchcraft. What we are witnessing is not development but classic performance art.
“The government has mastered the act of conjuring figures that dazzle the eyes and insult the intelligence of the people.
“According to official statements, a company called Backbone Infrastructure Nigeria Limited in partnership with a Canadian firm known as NEFEX has secured a staggering fifty billion dollars to build a refinery and free trade zone in Ilaje.
“For perspective, the Dangote Refinery which is the largest in Africa cost nineteen billion dollars and took nearly a decade to complete.
“Yet without a single sign of feasibility study, environmental clearance, or land preparation, Ondo State is told to believe that fifty billion dollars has suddenly appeared like manna from political heaven.
“The facts however are less divine. NEFEX, the supposed foreign partner, was only incorporated in February this year in Canada. It has no verifiable record of handling any project beyond the digital ink of its registration certificate.
“No credible financial institution has confirmed the existence of the funds it claims to have secured. Even the Memorandum of Understanding that anchors this phantom project remains hidden from public view.
“The people have not seen the terms, the obligations, or the liabilities. Everything exists in the realm of storytelling, not transparency.
“It is deeply insulting that a government which has failed to maintain basic infrastructure or maintain academic calendar on our campuses now seeks refuge in fantasy economics.
“The people of Ondo State are not gullible. They are tired of empty declarations that make headlines but deliver no hope. If the government truly believes in this project, let it publish the full MoU, disclose the names and profiles of the financiers, release the Environmental Impact Assessment, and present verifiable evidence of any actual funding.
“Until these are done, the so-called fifty billion dollar deal remains exactly what it appears to be, a media illusion crafted to distract the public from glaring failures in governance.
“Governance is not a theatre and development is not a press release. The people deserve truth, not trickery; results, not rhetoric.”
