Gov blames predecessor over Benue cement ownership
Benue State Governor, Honourable Gabriel Suswam, has blamed his predecessor for his inability to protect the interest of the host communities of Benue Cement Company in the transfer of ownership agreement it sealed with Dangote Group of Companies.
Suswam made the disclosure during a chat with newsmen after a closed door parley inside the Banquet Hall, Government House, Makurdi, to find a common ground between the Mbayion community leaders and BCC management team on Wednesday.
The recurring crises that led to the arrest of over 50 Mbayion youths for disrupting the production lines of the company recently would have been put behind, if the past administration had taken the bull by the horn to insert some advantageous clauses favourably to the company.
The governor, who posited that during the discussion BCC accepted its fault for failing to establish an enabling environment that would have created a amiable relationship with the aggrieved community, faulted the militancy stance of the community to drive its message to the company.
He was appreciative of the two parties for sheathing their swords and agreeing to find a lasting solution to the problem, stressing that violence in any form was not acceptable to his administration.
It will be recalled that quagmire between the company and BCC started in 2007 when Dangote Group of Companies took over the ownership of the of BCC.
Source: Nigerian Tribune Published under Cement News
