By Dele Ogbodo
It was indeed a dream come true and a great day for the Raw Materials Research Development Council (RMRDC) and Nigeria’s industrial sector as the National Assembly (NASS) through the Senate, Nigerians from different walks of life and stakeholders overwhelming agree that the Raw Materials Bill 2022 as proposed for amendment 2024 Bill be passed into an Act.
Speaking at the public Hearing on Raw Materials and Research and Development Council Act 2022 Amendment Bill, 2024 (S.B 606) at the National Assembly in Abuja, the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, on Wednesday commended the Director General of the RMRDC, Prof. Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso and its management team for expediting the amendment process through the sponsor of the Bill, Senator Peter Onyekachi Nwaebonyi, on the need for the proposed 30% value addition to the country’s raw materials before they are exported.
The Senate President, who was represented by the Deputy Chief Whip of the Red Chamber, Senator Peter Nwaebonyi, who is said the Bill when passed will be a game changer for the country and a sure path to Nigeria’s much sought industrialisation.
Akpabio, said: “Today we are here not mainly as lawmakers, policy makers, or industry experts, but as custodians of Nigeria’s economic destiny.
“Our decision-making here today will determine our economic future as a nation.
“It is trite to say that our country, Nigeria, is so blessed with abundant natural resources, only to extract these natural wealth from the bowel of our land and ships abroad in its raw form.
“Thereby allowing the foreign industries to reap all the benefits that naturally should have belonged to our people, Nigerians.
“This practice must not continue, and that is the rationale behind this deal. And we are here today to change the narrative.”
According to him, the Bill before Nigerians and Senate seems to be a game-changer as it seeks to enshrine a fundamental economic truth that no nation can attain a true economic greatness by exporting its wealth in its crudest form without processing them to at least a minimum of 30% before exporting them.
This Bill, the Senate President said, seeks to make it mandatory that every raw material available in Nigeria must be processed at least to 30% before export. By so doing, jobs are created, value is added for economy.
He said: “Distinguished colleagues, stakeholders, and faculty in Nigeria, let us remember this day as a day we choose to walk in a path of progress over complacency.
This Bill, if passed, will be a foundation upon our economic triumph as a nation.
In view of the act foreseen, and on behalf of our principal, the President of Nigeria Senate, your common President on that, I hereby declare this public hearing open.
In a brief remark, at the hearing, the DG of the Council, Prof. Ike-Muonso, explained that Nigeria stands at the threshold of destiny, where the choices it makes will forever shape the course of our country’s history.
He said: “We are faced with a profound decision. Will we seize the opportunity to catapult Nigeria into a future of industrial triumph, where our ingenuity and resources forge a path of prosperity and self-sufficiency, he asked?
“Or will we remain shackled to the chains of our past, where the vast riches of our land have been exploited, leaving us as mere suppliers of raw materials for others to refine and reap the rewards?”
According to him, the fate of our country hangs in the balance, adding that it is our collective responsibility to choose the path that will unleash the full potential of Nigeria and secure a brighter future for generations to come.
“We must ask ourselves, do we continue on this trajectory of economic servitude, or do we take bold and decisive steps towards reclaiming our industrial sovereignty.” Prof. Ike-Muonso, added.
