Reps to interface with Dangote, BUA on cement price

The House of Representatives has resolved to invite the management of the Dangote BUA and other cement manufacturers to interface over the high cost of cement in the country.

This followed the adoption of a motion by Rep. Jonathan Gbefwi (PDP-Nasarawa) at plenary on Wednesday.

Presenting the motion, Gbefwi said that the manufacturers had raised the price of the commodity by 50 percent, leading to a sharp increase in the cost of building materials in the country.

“The raw materials for the manufacturing of cement, which include lime, silica, alumina, iron oxide, and gypsum, are all sourced locally and not affected by exchange rate volatility,” he said.

The lawmaker said that all the factors of production and elements of cement production were being sourced locally.

“Concerned that the manufacturers of cement are capitalising on exchange volatility to arbitrarily increase the price of the product, whose cost of production has not changed.

“I am also concerned that the cement cabal is unconscionably inflicting hardship on Nigerians as the prices of rent and associated services have increased.

“The increase is a direct affront and sabotage of President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s effort to bring comfort to the populace and should be resolved immediately,” he said.

Contributing, Rep. Peter Ifanyi (PDP-Anambra) said that the motion affected the downtrodden in society.

He said that there were reports suggesting that producers were going to crash the price of cement to N3, 000, saying, however, that the price had continued to rise astronomically.

Rep. Yussuf Gagdi (APC-Plateau) supported the claim, accusing cement dealers of smuggling the commodity to neighbouring countries at the detriment of Nigerians.

In his ruling, the Speaker, Rep. Tajudeen Abbas, said cement manufacturers and all relevant agencies of government had questions to answer from the parliament