President of the Association of Automobile Boatyards Transport Equipment and Allied Employers of Nigeria (AABTEAEN), Adekunle Jaiyesimi, has urged President Bola Tinubu to carry stakeholders along in the implementation of the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) policy.
Recall the Federal Government recently rolled out plans to subsidise CNG vehicle conversion kits by 50 per cent for road transport union members across the country.
Fielding questions from journalists at the 44th yearly general meeting of AABTEAEN in Lagos recently, he argued the government should have had interactions with the Real Sector before making a policy statement.
“The new government is not carrying us along on this project. They should engage more with major brands like Toyota, Mitsubishi, Kia, Nissan, Suzuki,” he said.
Recall in 2014, the Jonathan administration came up with the National Automotive Industry Development Plan, which was designed to encourage investments in local manufacturing and assembly of vehicles while creating local jobs, boosting the gross domestic product (GDP). He said the Tinubu government should have appraised the Development Plan and looked at the gaps, before coming up with the CNG policy.
He added: “Most of our members invest in automobile assembly projects. We are yet to break even. The moment they came in last year, they should have re-appraised all that we did. They should have looked at all the mistakes that past administrations made in implementing the project and corrected them.
“The government should have looked at what we did wrong in the area of assembly, corrected this before the CNG initiatives. Most of the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) that we are representing are yet to get their buy-in and the government is announcing a new policy. It will be difficult to re-convert the engines. We have to look at the warranty implication. Nobody should tamper with the engines without their consent. When there is a complaint, the manufacturer will never come to your assistance.”
Speaking further, he noted 2023 was tough, “though we grew the income by 25 per cent. This year, we want to engage more in terms of advocacy. We have a lot of factors affecting our members. The exchange rate has affected our performance.”
He, however, listed other achievements in 2023 as organising capacity development programmes; enjoying a cordial relationship with Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), and providing useful and timely information to members, among others.
