Bauchi govt privatises hotels, meat factory, fertiliser

As part of efforts to tackle unemployment in Bauchi State, the state government has listed six moribund industries for privatisation to the highest bidder.

They are Bauchi Meat Factory, Bauchi Furniture Company, Bauchi State Fertiser and Blending Company, Zaranda Hotels, Wikki Hotels and Tours, and Gallambi Cattle Ranch.

Bauchi State Deputy Governor, Sen. Baba Tela, who is the Chairman Bureau for Privatisation and Economic Reforms, made this known on Tuesday.

Tela, who spoke with journalists at Government House in Bauchi shortly after the closing of financial bidding for the six ailing companies, said it was in the best interest of all stakeholders in the state the entire process was carried out.

“Government is not just interested in selling the assets off but more interesting in seeing them work because it has realised it’s incapacitated to run them profitably.

“If you look at all those places they were doing well now they, so if you bring in somebody who can make them look good that is fantastic,” he said

The deputy governor added that the state government would bring in people who have the financial and managerial capacity to resuscitate the six ailing companies.

Tela said the purpose was to generate money for the government, create employment, and boost economic activities of the state.

“This is the first round. More industries and entities have been slated for and we will continue to do it as long as there are those enterprises that needed to be privatized,” he said.

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Speaking during the financial bid opening, the Secretary to the State Government, Barrister Mohammed Kashim, described the process as smooth and transparent.

Kashim disclosed that AYM Shafa defeated two others and emerged preferred bidder to clinch Bauchi Fertiliser and Blending Company after offering 80 per cent shares at the price of N400 million.

While New Frontier was the preferred bidder to acquire 75 per cent of Bauchi Meat Factory at N301 million, Galambi Cattle Ranch was acquired by N150 million, while H&Y Global Ventures was for the same amount.

While Zaranda was leased out for 25 years to preferred bidder Butfield which offered N1.2 billion, Butfield also beat other bidders to Wikki Hotels which offered N200 million for a lease of 25 years.

Speaking on the development, the Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state, Comrade Danjuma Seleh, assured workers that the state government has carried them along in the process.

Damjuma expressed the hope that the privatisation of public assets in the state would not lead to the sacking of workers in the affected entities.

He appealed to the state government to consider workers who have worked for over a decade to be considered for pension.

The Star