Oil bearing communities in Delta State have warned the state government and the House of Assembly to tread carefully on the state’s Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) amendment Bill.
An executive bill was recently sent to the House of Assembly by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for the amendment of the DESOPADEC law
But oil bearing communities are kicking against the perceived sectional agenda of the proposed amendment.
Flowstation and Wellhead Ijaw host communities yesterday gave foreign nationals and oil multinationals operating in the state seven days to vacate their personnel and contractors.
The host communities warned that they would not guarantee the safety of those who remained after the ultimatum.
Comrade Sheriff Mulade, John Bebeapere, Isaac Ikoroware, Faith Mamamu and Dickson Ogugu, representing Gbaramatu, Ogulagha, Egbema, Ogbe-Ijoh and Diebri, gave the ultimatum at the weekend after a meeting of the host communities in Warri.
In a communiqué after the meeting, the host communities said: “The proposed amendment bill is like a keg of gun powder, which can explode any day and engulf the state with devastating consequences.
“We call on the foreign embassies to advise their nationals in the above Ijaw territories as their safety shall not be guaranteed.
“We hereby call on the major oil companies, including Chevron Nigeria Limited, Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Neconde Energy Limited, Shell Development Petroleum Company (SPDC) and AGIP within the above Ijaw territories, to vacate their personnel and contractors from their various facilities within seven days effective from the date of this publication.”
They said instead of amending the DESOPADEC law, the government should release N300 billion underpaid to the commission over the years, to enable it begin an aggressive development of their areas.
The Ijaw community leaders condemned the amendment, adding that the focus of DESOPADEC would no longer be restricted to the oil bearing communities, which have peculiar development challenges because of oil and gas exploration and production activities.
“The negative effect of this arrangement is that politicians who are not from oil bearing communities would be the ones to determine the direction of the Commission to the detriment of the oil and gas producing communities,” the communiqué said.
The group faulted last Thursday’s public hearing organised by the House of Assembly, alleging that it was stage-managed and members of the ad hoc committee carefully.
They called for a new sharing formula that would give the host communities 50 per cent and impacted communities 30 per cent.
That would leave 20 per cent to the state government.
The host comunities urged the state government to source funds for the development of the state capital and other parts of the state from other sources.