Reps member’s information on Delta Steel Company Inaccurate ― PDP chieftain

People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chieftain, Chief Sunny Onuesoke, has restated that the information made available to Hon. Ben Igbakpa, the member representing Ethiope Constituency in the House of Representatives about the state of Delta Steel Company, Ovwian/Aladja, did not portray the true picture on ground.

Onuesoke spoke in reaction to a publication in a national daily with the caption: “Reps Probe 1.9bn Delta Steel Company Collapse,” suggesting that the company was not doing well, prompting the House of Representatives, upon a motion moved by Hon Igbakpa, to set up a committee to investigate the state of things at the plant.

The PDP Chieftain, while addressing newsmen in Warri, Delta State on Friday, disclosed that since the take-over of the company by Premium Steel and Mines Ltd, activities have peaked and steel products were being produced daily at the plant.

ALSO READ: Onitsha industrialist lauds FG over border closure

Onuesoke, who said he visited the company recently, affirmed that the management was doing a total turn-around of the company with the installation of modern equipment, just as it had continued to impact on its immediate community through the implementation of its Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.

“The Rolling Mill is working at full blast and the next in line is the SMS shop which will guarantee local production of billets. The management is targeting the third quarter of next year for the SMS to come on stream.

“When PSML took over the plant, it met just five staff on board. Today, they have no fewer than 500 staff principally sourced from the Nigerian labour market.

“By the time the SMS is activated, they should be talking of over 3,000 direct and indirect staff in the plant.

“So, it is not fair to suggest that the plant was in bad shape,’’ Onuesoke stated.

He called on the Federal Government to promote business-friendly policies to stimulate industrial growth so as to guarantee a robust business climate in Nigeria, adding that it is a good idea for the House of Representatives Committee on Steel Development to visit the company as that would provide ample opportunity to share the company experiences with the federal lawmakers.