The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris has welcomed the partnership request from Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) on Compressed Natural gas (CNG).
Idris, while addressing the National Executive Council of IPMAN who paid him a courtesy visit on Thursday in Abuja commended the association for taking such a bold step.
He said that often times, IPMAN and the Federal Government use to be at logger head, adding that this demand for partnership is a welcome development that will produce positive results for the country.
According to the Minister, the Federal Government aims to bring down the cost of transportation by over 50 percent through the CNG initiative.
“In the wake of the removal of fuel subsidy, of course it was expected that the price of PMS will go up. This will in turn affect the transportation cost for Nigerians going to and fro their various places of work.
“The Federal Government immediately thought it wise, in addition to other measures, to introduce the CNG.
“The CNG is expected to bring down the cost of transportation and I am happy that IPMAN is in the forefront in this vanguard of achieving the CNG Initiative,” he said.
“President Tinubu’s bold move to remove the fuel subsidy has presented a unique opportunity for organizations like IPMAN to take the lead in shaping the energy landscape in Nigeria.”
The nation has been looking for alternative ways of bringing down the cost of transportation and the CNG is the surest way to go,” Idris said.
Idris explained that already, the Federal Government, in the first instance, has set aside N100 billion for the purchase of CNG buses and the establishment of CNG centres across the country.
This, he said, was in addition to the introduction of tax waivers for the importers of CNG kits as well as other investors in the sub-sector.
While enlisting the support of IPMAN for the success of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the Minister acknowledged them for considering his ministry as well as its agencies as veritable partners.
The Minister bemoaned how fake news has done so much damage to the various fabrics of the society.
He added that there is a ray of hope through the collaboration of his ministry and UNESCO to come up with measures to curb the menace of fake news.
He pledged to give more visibility to the in-house curated programme of the Association tagged “IPMAN Today”, on the various public information agencies under his ministry.
Idris also promised to utilize the 30,000 member structure of IPMAN in the implementation of the value re-orientation programmes encapsulated in the National Value Charter.
Speaking earlier, the President of IPMAN, Abubakar Maigandi pledged the unalloyed support of the Association for the President’s CNG Initiative, adding that it will want to partners with the Federal Government.
He promised to complement government in the green energy programme, which will give a boost to the realization of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President.
He decried how prices of petroleum products are constantly being manipulated through the spread of fake news and sought the support of the ministry to combat the menace.
The IPMAN President stressed that the association has come up with a programme tagged “IPMAN Today” – a radio and television programme, which would serve as the authentic source of news on the activities of the Association.
He then solicited for support and partnership to air the programme via the NTA and Radio Nigeria.
NAN
