By: Felix Ikpotor
The Rivers State Government has charged retirees of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, to consider taking up the challenge of building a modular refinery to address the energy situation in the state.
Commissioner for Information and Communication in the state, Warisenibo Joe Johnson gave the charge when a delegation of the NNPC Eastern Zone Retired Staff Investment Cooperative Society Ltd., paid him a courtesy visit in his office.
Johnson noted that the NNPC retired senior citizens have a lot to offer in advancing the course of development in the state, given their wealth of experience, which he said the state government is willing to tap from, adding that the state governor, Sir siminalayi Fubara is poised to attract the best brains within and beyond to help his administration in piloting the transformation of the state to the fast lane of accelerated development.
He added that his office is open to partnership from any quarters for the progress of the state.
“The governor is a human being like all of us. He has been in the public service. But he would leverage on the experience that most of you have acquired over the years at NNPC, which is a role model when it comes to organizational management.”
“For example, we have power challenge which those of you with engineering expertise can make available to the Rivers State Government. This is an area that you can be interested in and we are ready to partner with you.
“There is no reason why we cannot have a modular refinery to produce fuel and associated byproducts for our local consumption to address the high cost of the products through availability due to local production by the modular refinery,” he said.
He therefore charged them to buy-in to the government with that game changer idea, even as he noted that the NNPC retired staff could as well offer consultancy services to the government in the areas of their core competencies.
The Information and Communication Commissioner asserted that the state has lost a lot interms of human capital development in the past eight years due to excessive politicking, stressing that the current administration is determined to fixing them.
Earlier in his remarks, President, NNPC Eastern Zone Retired Staff Investment Cooperative Society Ltd., Sir Francis Igwebuike Ifi applauded Warisenibo Joe Johnson on his well-deserved appointment as a member of the Rivers State Executive Council .
He expressed absolute confidence in the ability of the State Chief Image Maker to deliver premium quality service to the state, given his antecedents.
He informed that the NNPC EZRSICS, which is the investment arm of the retirees, recognises Warisenibo Joe Johnson as one of their own, a close friend and dependable ally who has the development and progress of the Investment Cooperative at heart.
He posited that it is for that reason that they associate with and will continue to associate with him.
“Our courtesy visit to you today is to show our solidarity and to felicitate with you on your well deserved appointment as Commissioner for Information and Communications of the Rivers State Government.
“We are delighted that you have made us proud to be so appointed into an exalted office. Your appointment has given all of us, cooperators, a sense of joy, pride and happiness,” Ifi said.
