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A group, South/South - South/East Development Group (SSSEDG) has called on President Umaru Yar'Adua to sack the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Charles Ugwu as a matter of urgency to avoid portraying the government in bad light.
A group, South/South - South/East Development Group (SSSEDG) has called on President Umaru Yar'Adua to sack the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Charles Ugwu as a matter of urgency to avoid portraying the government in bad light.
Speaking through its national leader, Prince Elias Odoemena, the group said that Ugwu constitutes a clog on foreign direct investment to Nigeria.
The group said after the House Committee on Privatisation said that all due process was followed with due diligence in the concession of Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, the minister was still working against the privatisation policy of the Federal Government, by calling for a review of the sale.
The group said Ugwu should be dropped because he does not believe in the rule of law, due process and good governance, adding that is why he has been exhibiting high level of ignorance which is very dangerous for a government that believes in the rule of law.
The group noted that utterances against the sale of Trade Fair Complex was sending wrong signal to the international community and this will also affect the much needed foreign investment into Nigeria.
Odoemena, who said that the mistake Ugwu made was his failure to understand that as much as the Federal Government is accountable to the people of Nigeria, it is also accountable to the international community and therefore, as minister, he must be guarded in his actions and utterances to avoid causing problems between Nigeria and countries whose citizens may wish to invest in Nigeria.
Prince Odoemena said it was unfortunate and regrettable that Ugwu as the immediate past president of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) did not see the need for the concession of the Trade Fair Complex so that it could be better managed after it was abandoned for about 30 years.
The group noted that Ugwu's interference in the process had been affecting the smooth take off by the new managers, who may be forced to seek judicial redress if Ugwu was not called to order.
'Our group, South/South-South/East Development Group (SSSEDG) wishes to inform Mr President that the group will, on demand, nominate a credible and experienced personality for the office of the minister of Commerce and Industry."