Senate Summons NNPC Over State Of Refineries

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines Wednesday, June 24th, 2015

Ayodele Afoabi, Abuja – The Upper legislative chamber also summoned the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( NNPC) , to as soon as relevant standing committees of the senate are put in place, give account on the state of the refineries

This is just as it called on the Federal Road safety Commission ( FRSC) to organize regular trainings for road tanker drivers

These resolutions are sequel to the motion sponsored by Senator Gbenga Ashafa ( Lagos APC) titled fuel tanker tragedies on Nigeria’s highways.

Leading the debate he noted with serious concern the spate of fuel tanker explosions on the highways which is getting curious by the day and once again raising the questions about what has become of the rail-line projects of past administration s as an alternative route to Nigerian highways.

He also observed that within the space of one week, four fuel tankers accident occurred in Nigeria’s to major cities claiming lives and destroying properties.

Senator Ashafa also noted that as condolence messages were still expresses to the victims and their family members, another accident occurred in Lagos,here another tanker conveying 33,000 litres of petrol exploded at Iyana Ipana, Lagos and injured no fewer than 14 persons,gutting about 21 vehicles and razing 44 shops

He said: ” All the fuel tankers lifting fuel from the tank farms along Apapa Oshodi express way have done tremendous damage to the highways causing death, pains and gridlocks on the highway

“Concerned that time has come for gover‎ment to seek permanent solution instead of temporal palliatives as fuel tankers from all states in the North, south east and south south states come to Lagos to lift fuel and besiege the highways causing the type of tragedy we have recorded recently at Onitsha and Lagos.

” if our ‎refineries were functional, all the tankers in Nigeria would not have business coming to Lagos to lift fuel as refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna would have taken care of that”

According to him the current road networks around Nigeria are grossly inadequate for the operations of trucks, tankers and the likes saying whatever would stop the menace in the nation highways must consider the volume of tankers lifting fuel from tank farms along Apapa Ports which have crowded the roads in and around Lagos and extended to other cities in Nigeria

Subsequently the senate called on the present administration to continue the process of revamping the rail system to ease off the pressure on the Nigeria Roads

Meanwhile in another motion sponsored by Senator Andy Uba ( PDP Anambra South) titled Managing the challenges of the rainy season, he noted with serious concerns the seasonal rainfall predictions (SRP) of the Nigerian Meteorological agency( NIMET) for 2015 which is quite high

He also lamented that the hydrological services agency, ministries of Water resources, aviation, environment, the Nigeria inland waterways authority and the National Emergency Management Agency are all aware of this predictions but do not appear to be prepared or coordinated to tackle the impending challenge

He observes that in many states of the south east and south south geopolitical zones, the perennial erosion problems are worsened by the rains, leaving the local communities counting their losses and increasing high numbers of internally displaced people in Nigeria.