Students urge FG to end fuel importation, back local refineries

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BENIN CITY — Nigerian students under the aegis of the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) have called on the Federal Government to end the importation of refined petroleum products and support local refineries, particularly the Dangote Refinery, as a crucial step towards achieving national self-sufficiency in fuel production and economic stability.

The students made the call during a solidarity rally in Benin City on Wednesday, with the theme “Protecting National Assets, Securing Youth Futures: NAPS Solidarity with Dangote Refinery for Economic Growth and Stability.”

Hundreds of students marched with placards through major streets and the Oba Ovonramwen Square, voicing support for homegrown industrialization and urging the Federal Government to protect local refineries from what they described as “economic sabotage.”

Addressing the rally, NAPS National President, Comrade Eshiofune Paul Oghayan, said the Dangote Refinery represents a beacon of hope for Nigeria’s industrial and economic rebirth. 

He noted that the refinery, if fully supported, could end decades of dependence on imported fuel, conserve foreign exchange, and stabilize the Naira.

"We call on the Federal Government to defend and protect the Dangote Refinery and other local refineries as national strategic assets,” Oghayan said. 

“Any sabotage against them must be treated as economic terrorism.”

He urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to ensure 100 percent crude oil supply to local refineries to enable them to operate at full capacity and reduce the cost of fuel in the domestic market.

"While we appreciate the 15 percent reduction in fuel importation approved by Mr. President, we insist that half-measures cannot deliver full recovery. Nigeria must refine what we use,” he added.

The students also demanded the passage of a Local Refining Protection Bill by the National Assembly to criminalize acts of sabotage against local refining operations. 

They further urged the dismantling of entrenched importation cartels that, they alleged, profit from Nigeria’s long-standing dependence on foreign fuel.

"We urge the Federal Government to scrap PENGASSAN, NUPENG, and DAPMAN if they continue to act as tools of economic blackmail and regression,” the group said.

According to NAPS, prioritizing local refining will create thousands of jobs for Nigerian youths, provide industrial training opportunities for polytechnic students, and re-establish Nigeria as Africa’s refining hub.

"If we lose this refinery, we lose more than fuel, we lose a generation of industrial opportunity, jobs, research, technology transfer, and national dignity,” Oghayan concluded.

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