A University Don has advocated for a law to make the local refining of crude oil mandatory to improve the economy and reduce the hardship being faced in the country.
Prof. Abdullahi Dan’Asabe-Jibrin lecturer at the Federal University of Lafia (FULafia) made the call at the 3rd seminar series of the faculty of Social Sciences of the institution in Lafia.
Prof. of Political Economy and Development Studies, Department of Political Science and Dean Faculty of Social Sciences, presented a paper titled ‘Nigeria State and Oil Sector: A Trajectory of Power, Politics and Poverty’.
He explained that at the moment crude oil is produced in nine out of the 36 states in the country with five core states accounting for more than two-thirds of the production.
He listed the states to include; Abia, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross-River, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo, and Rivers and said that the Niger Delta basin is the largest producer along the West African coast with 246 production fields and 3, 446 active wells.
The don added that how can Nigeria which is one of the largest oil-producing countries in Africa and with enormous potential relies on foreign refineries for its domestic consumption.
He also advocated a complete ban on the exportation of the country’s crude oil as well as the importation of its products to promote production.
According to him, the government should fix the refineries in the country and ensure that the four refineries operate optimally.
He explained that if the Dangote refinery is producing and the four government refineries are also working, it would guarantee the availability and affordability of petroleum products in the country.
“Dangote refinery alone can produce petroleum products for domestic consumption and exports,” he added.
Dan’Asabe-Jibrin further suggested that governments should build modular refineries and give private investors the license to build more to meet the energy needs of Nigerians.
The professor therefore called on the government to fight corruption, major impediments in the oil sector and return fuel subsidies to reduce the hardship being faced by the people.
In his remarks, Prof Shehu Abdul-Rahman, Vice Chancellor (VC) of the university said that the seminar series was introduced to enable researchers to share knowledge to address societal problems.
The VC encouraged other researchers to investigate more and provide theories and practical solutions to the contemporary challenges confronting the country to help those in positions of authority.
The Vice-Chancellor, therefore, promised that the institution would reward the faculties and departments that perform best in academic activities and encouraged all in attendance to utilise the takeaways from the seminar. (NAN).