…Give Company seven days to slash cement price
The businesses of the BUA Group, one of Nigeria’s cement manufacturers, may be grounded very soon as Civil Society groups have given the management seven days to either slash the cement price to N3, 500 per 50kg bag it promised the President Bola Tinubu-led administration or face the consequences.
The Civil Society groups also urged the company, which is now selling above N10,000 per 50kg bag of cement, to immediately apologize to the government and Nigerians for the alleged falsehood and deceit.
They lamented that the false declaration by the BUA Group led to very serious consequences for Nigerians, particularly operators within the building and construction industry, who got loans from banks and individuals to build houses.
In a statement jointly issued by Comrade Bartholomew Okondo (FCS), Convener, Advocacy for Good Government; and Patience Okhuahensuri, the Executive Director, Rumes Royal Foundation, at the weekend, the groups wondered why the BUA Group reneged on its promise to the new government in less than six months despite the current hardship in the country.
They also accused the BUA Group of misleading President Tinubu by giving him wrong information, which would have inadvertently led to some faulty policies at the federal level, stressing that such was akin to throwing banana peels on the path of the president.
The groups stated: “We are greatly concerned and are calling on BUA Group to desist from these shameful efforts at vainglory which is causing a lot of discomfort and pains to the Nigerian people, who deserve empathy in the face of excruciating hardship in the country, and not these grandstanding and self-serving actions that only exacerbate the situation.
“Regulatory agencies must rein in BUA Group and ensure it stops its false posturing and endless deception of unsuspecting members of the Nigerian public.
“The chairman of BUA Group must, as a matter of urgency, render an unreserved apology within SEVEN DAYS to all Nigerians, the Federal Government, and the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for railroading the entire country into a wild goose chase of evident falsehood.
“Failure to comply within these SEVEN DAYS, BUA Group will be hearing the next line of action from our organization.”
On October 1, 2023, the Chairman of BUA Group, Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, assured President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Nigerians that he would bring down the price of cement to N3,500 per 50kg bag.
While the management of BUA Group is yet to react on the issue, it is noteworthy that operators in real estate sector recently protested against the recent hike in cement price.
President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria, REDAN, Dr. Aliyu Wamakko, said in Abuja that the increase would widen the housing deficit gap.
Wamakko, therefore called on President Bola Tinubu to summon cement manufacturers for discussion to forestall further hardship.
“The price of ready-mix concrete will also be increased while the cost of production of concrete will rise significantly. Such an increment, if allowed to take place, will worsen the economic situation of the nation.
“When there is construction, there is a multiple employment and it helps to reduce the poverty index of the country. But remember that because of no employment, the resultant effect is banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery.
“The federal government should also remember that we have a 28 million housing deficit in Nigeria. Cement is an essential ingredient in the production of buildings. Frequency in the increase of its price has negatively impacted the nation’s housing sector. Experience has shown that high prices of cement tend to encourage a reduction in the quality of building production,” he said.
Recall that the Works Minister, Engr. Dave Umahi, had threatened to flood the market with cheaper imported cement if local producers fail to slash their prices.
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