Stakeholders in the chemical sector, at the weekend, opened a can of worms, saying the current stifling economic situation in the country, occasioned by the harsh removal of fuel subsidy, has been forcing firms to relocate from Nigeria to other countries where the policy environment favours them.

Two leaders in the sector, the outgoing president of the National Union of Chemical Footwear Rubber Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees (NUCFRLANMPE), Babatunde Goke Olatunji, and the executive secretary, Chemical and Non-Metallic Products? Employers Federation (CANMPEF), Femi Oke, lamented that the ugly development would worsen the massive unemployment situation in the country. They demanded that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu should urgently address the unpleasant situation before things get out of hand.

The two leaders made the remarks during the seventh Quadrennial Delegates? Conference of NUCFRLANMPE, which held at the Kokotel Hotels in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State capital. The conference was tagged ?Leading a union in an era of economic instability.?

While giving a solidarity speech, Oke, who eulogized the outgoing president of NUCFRLANMPE, Olatunji, for his outstanding performance in office for eight years, urged members of the union to cooperate with the in-coming president, saying the economic situation has become very hostile to the growth and development of industries in Nigeria.

According to him, ?The current situation has become so hostile and harsh that some companies are already relocating from Nigeria.?

He reasoned that the atmosphere in the country ?has become so bad, courtesy of the fuel subsidy removal, which is having so much devastating effect on the industrial sector of the country. ?

Speaking in the same vein and particularly about the state of the nation, Olatunji said the theme of the conference was very appropriate for discussion ?at this present time when the national economy is nose-diving and everyone is at a crossroads.?

He said it was a fact that all economic policies advanced to address the challenges in Nigeria have proved abortive.

?It is either they are ill-conceived or some cabals are working against their implementation,? he stated.

The labour leader submitted that the hastiness in removing fuel subsidy without considering measures for cushioning possible negative effects remained the starting point for the current economic instability.

?Fuel subsidy removal should have been a gradual process and in phases, but not the outright removal without feeling the pulse of the masses,? he said.

He added that top-bottom approach in decision making can only bring about dissent reactions, noting that rather, decision making should follow bottom-top approach, more importantly, in a democratic setting as Nigeria.

He also advised the Federal Government on the way forward, saying that there is no nation in the world that does not subsidize public goods and services for the advancement of the national economy.

?It is equally important to canvass for diversification instead of relying solely on petroleum.

More, worrisome is the fact that the crude oil is exported in its raw form without value-adding,? he said. Olatunji lamented that Nigeria has four public refineries but none is working, noting that more pathetic is the fact that Dangote Refinery and other modular refineries in the country are not getting adequate support from the Nigerian government.

He condemned roles played by some government agencies and cabals, whom he said enrich themselves through dubious means of oil and gas shady businesses.

?Another hydra headed monster that is affecting both businesses and individuals in Nigeria is the high tariffs of electricity,? he stated.

Meanwhile Sunday Bolarinwa was elected as the new president of NUCFRLANMPE at the two day delegate conference. The new president who emerged out of a general consensus of the union pledged to advance the cause of the members as workers continued to face stiff economic challenges. (Daily Sun)

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