₦airaland Forum

PRESS STATEMENT
For Immediate Release
July 17, 2025

ADC to FG: You Cannot Spend Billions to Repair Refineries—Then Quietly Sell Them Without a Full Audit
“What Exactly Are You Selling—Scrap or Sovereign Assets?”

The African Democratic Congress (ADC), has demanded a full audit of Nigeria’s refineries, citing recent reports that allege that successive governments have spent nearly $18billion on the rehabilitation of the three major refineries in the country.

In a statement by the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary and Coalition Spokesperson, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party questioned whether the Tinubu administration has been deceiving Nigerians, having recently spent over $2.8billion dollars on the refineries, before declaring that they were moribund.

The full statement read:

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has noted with deep concern the recent confirmation by the Tinubu administration and the leadership of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) that the federal government is proceeding with the full privatisation of Nigeria’s state-owned refineries. This development, coming just months after government officials claimed that the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries had resumed partial operations, raises fundamental questions about transparency and policy coherence.

It would be recalled that the APC government recently announced that the refineries were already working. It is therefore curious that the same government, having spent such humongous amounts on the refineries, is now planning to sell them off.

ADC is concerned about the perennial waste and underhanded dealings in the name of turnaround maintenance that never turned anything around but the personal fortunes of those involved. We believe this must not continue. We are however suspicious of the current moves being made by the government to sell off the refineries outright without giving full considerations to alternative options and without consultations with critical stakeholders. Selling off the refineries under the prevailing circumstances is indeed conducive for all sorts of criminal dealings, whereby national assets could be deliberately devalued and sold to cronies.

ADC therefore calls for a full and independent audit—financial, technical, and structural— before any sale is contemplated or privatisation is considered.

Successive APC administrations have poured over $18 billion into the so-called rehabilitation of Nigeria’s refineries. The current administration is reported to have spent another $2.8 billion under the same pretext. Yet there is no verifiable increase in refining capacity, no observable cost efficiency, and no fuel security benefit accruing to the Nigerian people. Instead, the same refineries have remained idle or dysfunctional, while the government continues to fund the importation of refined petroleum products.

Even Africa’s foremost industrialist, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, whose private refinery now stands as the only viable refining asset in the country, has publicly stated his doubts that these government-owned refineries can ever work again. And he is right to doubt. The infrastructure is obsolete, the operations are hollowed out, and the entire value-chain has become a black hole for public funds. So again, we must ask: what exactly is being sold, and why now?

The truth is that if the intention all along was to privatise the refineries, then the years of huge public spending is at best a waste, and at worst a scam.

Government cannot, in good conscience, expend public funds on assets under the guise of rehabilitation, only to turn around and offer them for sale—without accountability on the investments already made and without any public reckoning. In other climes, those responsible for such transactions would have faced judgments.

The ADC believes that before any conversation about privatisation can proceed, there must be a comprehensive forensic audit of all funds allocated to refinery rehabilitation from 2010 to date. There must also be a third-party technical assessment to determine the true status and potential of the assets in question.

The audit findings must be presented in full to the public through a legislative hearing, with civil society, energy economists, and anti-corruption agencies present. Until then, any attempt to sell these refineries must be considered not just illegitimate, but criminal.

This is not simply about public finance. It is about public trust. If this government truly believes in reform, then it must begin with the truth. And if it claims to be accountable, then it must submit itself to scrutiny. What we are witnessing is not a policy decision. It is a cover-up. And the ADC will not stand by while national assets are quietly auctioned to cronies and to mask years of systemic failure.

End

Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi
Interim National Publicity Secretary
African Democratic Congress (ADC)

https://x.com/BolajiADC/status/1945883726950391895

Successive APC administrations have poured over $18 billion into the so-called rehabilitation of Nigeria’s refineries. The current administration is reported to have spent another $2.8 billion under the same pretext.

If you are a youth and still in Nigeria, I pity you and your generation because the best of Nigeria is what y'all is witnessing now. It will only get worst.

We told everyone that refineries working was just propaganda

Abacha's regime will be a child's play by the time Tinubu finishes with Nigeria
.

They accused Atiku of wanting to sell them to his friends, please who is Tinubu selling to. Nigeria is a funny country, even the so called educated defends evil.

If Nigeria were a company or a football club, her managers would have since been sacked and prosecuted.

Our "Baby steps of pain" seem to be self inflicted.

Crooks who thinks they are smart to hide their criminality of the homongous TAM they have corruptly embezzled in the name of revamping the moribund refineries they know can not and never work. These set of fellas must be brought to justice sometime someday.

I love how this ADC does not waste time but has been giving the APC wotoporously( as the LP via Peter Obi have been doing) against every corruption and corrupt baggages of this irresponsible govt.

Shawarmagirl:
Successive APC administrations have poured over $18 billion into the so-called rehabilitation of Nigeria’s refineries. The current administration is reported to have spent another $2.8 billion under the same pretext.

If you are a youth and still in Nigeria, I pity you and your generation because the best of Nigeria is what y'all is witnessing now. It will only get worst.

treesun:
I sat down I calucluted, the money spent could have built a new refinery like Dangote!

Racoon:
Crooks who thinks they are smart to hide their criminality of the homongous TAM they have corruptly embezzled in the name of revamping the moribund refineries they know can not and never work. These set of fellas must be brought to justice sometime someday.

I love how this ADC does not waste time but has been giving the APC wotoporously( as the LP via Peter Obi have been doing) against every corruption and corrupt baggages of this irresponsible govt.

matify83:
If Nigeria were a company or a football club, her managers would have since been sacked and prosecuted.

Our "Baby steps of pain" seem to be self inflicted.

iwaeda:
They accused Atiku of wanting to sell them to his friends, please who is Tinubu selling to. Nigeria is a funny country, even the so called educated defends evil.

Shikini:
Abacha's regime will be a child's play by the time Tinubu finishes with Nigeria
.

givedemwotowoto:
We told everyone that refineries working was just propaganda

Lol, I dey laugh 😂😂. Can you imagine what these political Idp are saying. This Abdullahi was a former publicity secretary of PDP, David Mark was Senate President under PDP for 16years, Malami was AGF when Kyari was given $18billion to rehabilitate the refineries, Atiku was VP under PDP when billions of dollars was released for turnaround maintenance. I appeal to President Tinubu to appoint an independent auditor to assess the money that was spent on turnaround maintenance on the refineries since 1999 - 2015 when PDP was in power, so that these political Idps who are trying to play saints and deceive some Nigerians can be rounded up and locked up in jail. Mr President should also audit the subsidy fraud under the 16years of PDP alongside the trillions of dollars missing from NNPC. This coalition of confusion must be taught a very big lessons of their lives. APC came into power, reduced fuel importation by 70% and by year end, there will be a total end to fuel importation. APC came in and also put an end to subsidy fraud. But these jackass and hyenas in a coalition of confusion have guts to talk because the Government has not yet opened their books.

iwaeda:
They accused Atiku of wanting to sell them to his friends, please who is Tinubu selling to. Nigeria is a funny country, even the so called educated defends evil.

treesun:
I sat down I calucluted, the money spent could have built a new refinery like Dangote!

Remaining your 3rd moniker, Ogododo

A man or bot is making unfounded allegations, I hope they have marked his face. Let me laugh at this one.