Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State has vowed that his administration will revitalise all the state owned moribund assets.
Mbah made the vowed on Thursday during the official flag-off of the Enugu United Palm Products Limited (EUPPL) located at Ibite-Olo, Ezeagu Local Government Area of the state.
Speaking at the event, Mbah described the N100 billion investment in the company which is in partnership with Pragmatic Palms Limited, as a “triumph of vision over cynicism,” saying it is a new lease of life for the EUPPL.
“For me, this flag-off is a triumph of vision over cynicism. Recall that a few months ago, when we announced an investment of N100bn in partnership with Pragmatic Palms Limited, the news was greeted with a lot of cynicism and doubt.
“We had a lot of naysayers and critics, who ascribed all sorts of things to this humongous investment. But as you have seen, we were absolutely clear as to what we wanted to achieve and accomplish for our people in Enugu State.
“So, what this groundbreaking ceremony represents for us is a new lease of life for Pragmatic Palm Product Limited. It also shows that we are getting closer to our dream to transform Enugu State as a premier destination for investment, industry, tourism, business and living.
“Therefore, I want to use this opportunity to reassure the management and executive of PPL of our commitment to supporting every step of this investment,” he said.
Speaking, the Managing Director/CEO of PPL, Prof. George Nwangwu, while assuring the people of the state that they will not fail them, rolled out a five-year aggressive plan to reposition EUPPL as one of the leading integrated oil palm establishments in Nigeria that would create 3,500 direct and indirect jobs.
Prof. Nwangwu said, “We will set up world-class oil mills across the three locations as well as increasing the oil production capacity over time.
“We will also set up and improve our refining capacity to produce crude palm oil, palm kernel oil, olein, stearin, biodiesel, as well as refined, bleached, and deodorised oil.
“In the downstream, we plan to have a share of the retail market by setting up the largest network of agents to aggregate fresh fruit bunches from around our catchment area.”
In their remarks, the Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Industry, Adaora Chukwu, and her counterpart in the Agriculture and Agro-Industrialisation, Patrick Ubru, recalled that EUPPL, originally established by the government of the defunct East Central State in 1970 on 6,700 hectares traversing Ibite-Olo in Ezeagu LGA, Ugwuoba in Oji River LGA, and Umulokpa in Uzo-Uwani LGA, though initially viable, was crippled by mismanagement, obsolete equipment, and limited market access.
Also, the Managing Director, Ugwuagama Farms LTD, Alhaji Friday Sani Nnaji, and the president, New-life Multi-purpose Farmers Association, John-Mary Anagolu, who expressed optimism that Enugu will soon become an oil palm exporting state, commended the governor for reviving the hope of Ndi Enugu, and encouraged the youths to see agriculture as veritable sector for becoming economically emancipated.
People from the host communities who could not hide their joy, lauded Governor Mbah for giving life once again to the EUPPL after over 40 years of dormancy.
