Stallion presents Nigerian-made Nissan vehicles to Jonathan

• As president orders patronage

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday got three Nigerian-made models of Nissan vehicles in commemoration of the nation’s Democracy Day.
The vehicles, produced at the Stallion Nissan Motors Plant located on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, included a Nissan Patrol SUV, Nissan Almera (Sunny) saloon car and a Nissan NP 300 Pick-Up.
The Stallion’s automobile facility in Lagos is targeting to produce 45,000 vehicles annually.
This is coming at a time the president has directed government agencies to patronise the company.
The Chairman of Stallion Group, Mr. Sunil Vaswani, presented the vehicles to the President at the International Conference Centre, where a special event, tagged “A day with young leaders of Nigeria,” specially organised to mark the nation’s Democracy Day.
Jonathan, after inspecting the vehicles, later took the driver’s seat of one of them, while Vice President Namadi Sambo took the front passenger’s seat.
Vaswani said the vehicles were of global standards technologically and were produced in Nigeria, in accordance with the Federal Government’s new automotive policy.
He said the plant was established, following the signing of the agreement between Nissan Motor Company and West African conglomerate of the Stallion Group on October 9, 2013, as he commended the government’s automotive policy, describing it as a historic step towards industrial and economic rejuvenation
According to him, “we are grateful for implementing this initiative, which is part of the Federal Government’s seven-point agenda to attract Foreign Direct Investments and emancipate the dormant sectors of the economy.
“The evolution of automotive manufacturing sector in Nigeria would not only encourage more FDIs but also stimulate industrial clusters, such as original equipment manufacturers that include steel plants, glass manufacturers, aftermarket shops and transportation service providers leading to job creation and contributing significantly to the GDP.
“The current population of Nigeria can convincingly support more than half a million vehicles annually, which is more than sufficient to sustain an emerging automotive industry.”