Akwa Ibom Assembly asks BPE to take over ALSCON

Akwa Ibom State of House Assembly yesterday passed a resolution calling on the Bureau of Pubic Enterprises, BPE, to take over the plant and assets of the Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria, ALSCON.

The resolution followed alleged recent case of looting of ALSCON assets by RUSSAL.

While bringing the matter before the House under matter of urgent public importance, the member representing Ikkot Abasi/ Eastern Obolo, Mr. Aboh Udoyork, said ongoing assets stripping of ALSCON by RUSAL, which was supposed to transform it into national productive assets for job creation and foreign exchange earnings, was a deliberate attempt to further undermine Nigeria’s effect to transform her economy into a big player in the world.

He said: “Following the systematic cannibalisation of the plant, community youth on the platform of Mboho Ikot Abasi wrote to the MD of ALSCON for opportunity to tour the facility, but such request was turned down.”

Udoyork added that though production had been halted, RUSAL had continued to engage in systematic stripping of the assets in a bid to cripple the plant and frustrate the American firm, BFIG, which the court recognised as the bona fide buyer of the firm.

He called on the Assembly to pass a resolution calling on Governor Godswill Akpabio to intervene in the matter while copies of the resolution should be forwarded to the state representatives in the National Assembly and President Goodluck Jonathan.

Commenting on the issue, the member representing Nsit Ubium, Hon. Onofoik Luke, called on the Assembly to thread with caution because of an existing Supreme Court judgement on the matter.

He said: “Time has come for us to pray for the survival and sustainability of our industries.”

Meanwhile, the management of Rusal ALSCON said a group of radical local residents of Ikot Abasi council undwertook an illegal coercive action against the hauling of obsolete assets by ALSCON’s contractors within the Ikot Abasi council territory.

The company’s spokesperson, Tatiayana Smirnova, said in a statement that “five load-carrying trucks were blocked by young extremists from Ikot Abasi Local Government Area during the hauling of obsolete assets from ASLCON within Ikot Abasi council.

“This unlawful coercive action was ostensibly undertaken by local residents to express their attitude toward the sale of obsolete items by smelter management.

“It appears that the true reason of the action, however, is to extort funds from the buyers of obsolete assets by blackmail. Such actions have interrupted the smelter’s performance of its contractual commitments and caused serious financial damage to ALSCON.