The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Niger-Delta

  • IYC condemns Reps’ rejection of IOCs HQ relocation to Niger Delta

    The umbrella organisation of Ijaw youths, the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide, has condemned the rejection by the House of Representatives of a motion to relocate the administrative headquarters of international oil companies (IOCs) to the Niger Delta region.

    In a statement yesterday in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, by its spokesman Daniel Dasimaka, IYC expressed displeasure about the alleged insensitivity of the Federal lawmakers.

    It said: “IYC is deeply saddened by the callousness and insensitivity of the members of the House of Representatives to the plight of the people of the Niger Delta, as amply demonstrated on May 2 by their rejection of the motion sponsored by Goodluck Opiah, praying the House to direct the multinational oil and gas companies to relocate their administrative head offices to the Niger Delta region.

    “We strongly believe that this action of the members of the House of Representatives has the potential of derailing the seeming calm in the Niger Delta, which resulted from positive steps, like the presidential directive made earlier this year by the then Acting President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, mandating all IOCs to relocate their administrative headquarters to their host communities in the Niger Delta.

    “The siting of the administrative headquarters of the IOCs outside their areas of operations has contributed to their adoption of policies and taking of decisions that are inconsiderate of the externalities of oil and gas exploration and exploitation in the Niger Delta, such as pollution, environmental hazards and degradation, leading to the dislocation of our local economy.

    “We, therefore, condemn the antagonists of Opiah’s motion, titled: Calling Oil Companies to Establish Operational and Administrative Offices in the Niger Delta Region, Where they Engage in Exploration and Exploitation.

    “We categorically and unequivocally condemn Speaker Yakubu Dogara’s unfortunate comments that ‘as a businessman, I cannot be forced toý site my business where I know it is not safe.’ If the region is not safe for the IOCs to site their administrative headquarters, as the Speaker has insinuated, how come it has been safe for them to carry out their main business of oil exploration and exploitation for close to 60 years?”

    The organisation also said the alleged short-sightedness of the Federal lawmakers had needlessly delayed the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) and retarded the viability of seaports outside Lagos.

    It said this had denied Nigeria of huge investments, revenues and employment opportunities.

    IYC said the earlier Nigerians realised that the Niger Delta crisis was a national and global problem, thereby acting accordingly, the better for the citizens.

    The organisation hailed the lawmakers from the Southsouth, Southeast and some of theirý Northeast and Northwest counterparts, who walked out of the House to show their displeasure to the alleged injustice.

    It said: “We find it disturbing that since the then Acting President voluntarily made the commitment on behalf of the Federal Government, he has failed to match his words with adequate action to fulfil it. We are, therefore, tempted to construe Prof OsInbajo’s statement as mere political declaration, aimed at currying plaudits.

    “We have not forgotten that in March, Prof Osinbajo directed the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, to engage with the IOCs on the way forward over repeated calls for the relocation of their head offices to the states where they produce crude oil from. Nothing seems to have been done to make it a reality. We are calling on the Presidency to expedite action to implement the Presidential directive.

    “We are also calling on the oil and gas companies to comply with the presidential directive by immediately relocating their headquarters to the communities of their operations. This is in their strategic interest, because when oil facilities are attacked in the Niger Delta communities, it is not the parochial lawmakers that are affected most.”

    The Ijaw youths’ umbrella body expressed the readiness of its members to work with relevant authorities to kick-start the implementation of Federal Government’s policy on modular refineries.

     

  • Methodist Church urges prayers for Buhari’s health

    Methodist Church urges prayers for Buhari’s health

    The Methodist Church Nigeria, Diocese of Nyanya, has expressed concern over President Muhammadu Buhari’s health, and called on the Church to pray for his quick recovery.

    The Church made the call in a communiqué issued on Sunday in Abuja at the end of the Annual Synod of the diocese, under the chairmanship of the Bishop of Nyanya, Rt. Rev Samuel Nortey.

    The communiqué was signed by Very. Rev Noble Kalu, the Synod Secretary.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Sunday’s synod is entitled: “God’s Word, My Guide’’.

    Kalu, in the communiqué, commended Buhari for the fight against corruption, noting that the fight should be based on the rule of law and no sacred cows should be spared.

    He also praised Buhari for the relative peace in the Niger Delta region through the dialogue option adopted by the Federal Government.

    He called on Nigerians, irrespective of political, religious and ethnic background to join hands with the present administration to build a country where peace, rule of law and freedom of speech reign.

    “We call on the government to sustain the peace to revolve the Niger Delta issues.

    “We call on the government to take action against the menace of killers in the guise of herdsmen who have been wreaking havoc on lives and property of helpless Nigerians across the country.

    “We condemn the continued killings of innocent persons in Southern Kaduna and call for an immediate stop to the attacks,’’ he noted.

    The synod secretary, in the communiqué, also urged government officials to stop blaming past administrators for the current economic downturn, adding that they should focus on ways to move the nation forward.

    On the path of education, Kalu urged the government to restructure the educational curricula to focus strongly on entrepreneurial skill acquisition, which would help the youths of the country.

  • JTF Commander lauds troops for repelling attack in Ondo State

    The Commander of the Joint Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta, Rear Admiral Suleman Apochi, on Sunday commended the gallantry of soldiers who recently repelled an attack by militants on the JTF’s troops in Ondo State.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the JTF troops had killed a suspected militant leader in a shoot-out with militants in Ondo state, and one soldier was also killed during the incident that occurred on April 30.

    Apochi told NAN in an interview in Yenagoa that the JTF under his command remained committed to protecting innocent citizens residing in the Niger Delta region.

    He said it was regrettable that troops deployed on routine patrols to secure oil infrastructure were targeted in unprovoked attacks.

    He explained that the soldiers were ambushed but they quickly recovered and repelled the attack, while the militants took to their heels when they realised that their leader was killed.

    The commander said the hoodlums fled with gunshot wounds.

    According to the Commander, the military has reopened the Ono-Lagos waterways and made it navigable after the militants’ group led by late Ossy Ibori had blocked the route for four months.

    He noted that the relative peace and reduced incidents of attacks on oil facilities were a result of the tireless efforts of the Joint Military Force deployed to the region and called for the support and understanding of the people of the area.

    “Our people need to understand the sacrifices of the military as patriotic citizens who have volunteered to protect them and give them the support they need in the line of duty, we are trained to defend people.

    “In the ongoing operation to fish out those responsible for the attack, we are very careful not to harm innocent people and we shall make no mistake about it, but anyone who habours or protects criminals will lose that immunity.

    “We shall go after anyone or community that shields the criminals,” Apohi warned.

  • Niger Delta Youth leader condemns armed attack on JTF troops

    Mr Kennedy West, a Youth Leader in the Niger Delta has condemned armed attack on troops of the Joint Task Force (JTF) and commisserated with the military over loss of life in the incident.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that JTF troops had repelled an attack by militants and killed a suspected militant leader in a shoot-out with the bandits in Ondo State on April 30.

    Spokesman of the Joint Force, Maj. Abubakar Abudullahi, had confirmed the development and said that a soldier was killed and three others injured during the shoot-out.

    Reacting to the development, West, who is also the Senior Special Assistant to Bayelsa Governor on Niger Delta Youth Matters, told NAN in an interview on Sunday in Yenagoa that the attack was regrettable.

    He noted that the attack came at a time the efforts of the military at restoring and sustaining peace and reducing criminality in the region were yielding fruits.

    West further condoled with the Commander of JTF, Rear Admiral Suleiman Apochi and the family of the slain soldier and advised residents in the area to assist the military in fishing out fleeing militants behind the dastardly act.

    “The attack coming at a time the JTF had achieved so much in terms of maintaining relative peace in the region is very sad, because the peace in the region had been boosting the confidence of investors.

    “The community people should assist the military to track the militants because they are not only a threat to the military but they pose greater danger to the innocent population, it is even more condemnable due to efforts by stakeholders to change the perception of investors.

    “Our people in the Niger Delta region should understand that violence has no benefit to the region.

    “We have seen what has been achieved within the months of peace in terms of Federal Government’s commitment towards development of the region” West said.

    He noted that stakeholders in the region were working tirelessly with the government and security agencies to guarantee conducive atmosphere for development and urged the military to remain focused and not allow the incident to dampen their morale.

    West further urged the JTF to enlighten residents in the affected areas that the military was in the area to isolate the deviants and protect the people.

     

  • Niger Delta: Buhari increases Amnesty Programme’s budget by N35b

    Niger Delta: Buhari increases Amnesty Programme’s budget by N35b

    •Funds released for ex-militants’ rehabilitation, reintegration
    •Rise in budgetary allocation fallout of recent presidential level visits to oil producing communities

    Good days appear to be here for the Niger Delta region.

    President Muhammadu Buhari has increased the Amnesty Programme budget by N35billion.

    That is N15billion more than the N20billion appropriated for the programme in 2016.

    This figure now brings the total vote for Amnesty Programme to N55 billion.

    He has already ordered the release of N30billion of the latest N35billion.

    The Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media & Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, said the Amnesty Office has now cleared the backlog of  ex-militants’ stipends up to the end of 2016.

    He said government’s gesture is “in sustenance of the new understanding between the Federal Government and the oil-producing communities of the Niger Delta.”

    He added:”although the Federal Government had approved a N20billion allocation for the Amnesty Programme in the 2016 budget, President Buhari has now raised the funds, and as appropriated, to N55billion with a recent release of additional N30billion. There is also a planned release of another N5billion later.

    “Currently the Amnesty Office has now paid up all ex-militants backlog of their stipends up to the end of 2016.

    “The release of the additional funds is coming after presidential level interactive engagements in the Niger Delta, where the Buhari administration has enunciated a New Vision for the oil-producing areas based on the presentation made by the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) to the President when he received leaders and stakeholders from the region last November.

    “Subsequently, the President asked his deputy, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, to embark on a tour of the region that saw him visiting several oil-producing states in the country.

    “Besides the monthly payment of about N65, 000 to N66,000 to the ex-militants, the funds would also go to the provision of reintegration activities under the Amnesty Programme including payment of tuition fees for beneficiaries from Niger Delta who are in post-secondary institutions at home and abroad, payment of in-training and hazard allowances and vocational training costs.

    “There are also empowerment schemes and self-help, self-employment support funds, including provision of needed equipments by the Amnesty Office.

    “Equally, the funds would also support the training of pilots, aviation engineers, technicians, and motor vehicles mechanics from the oil-producing communities.”

    The statement assured that President Buhari will fulfil his promises to Niger Delta.

    It added: “The Buhari administration reassures the Niger Delta communities of its unalloyed commitment to a faithful implementation of its promises made during the Federal Government’s interactive engagement visits by the Vice President to different oil-producing communities.

    “Other promises made during the visits are currently at different stages of effective implementation, including the effective opening of the Maritime University, integration of illegal refiners under the concept of new Modular Refineries, resumption of all abandoned construction projects in the region, the Ogoni Clean-up, and several others.

    “For instance the Maritime University is now on course to be opened before the end of the year as the presidency has already set the process in motion as announced yesterday.

    “Other announcements are to follow as each of the commitments of the FG to the Niger Delta oil-producing communities reach advanced and implementation stages.

    “Already there is an inter-ministerial group consisting of all relevant ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs of the FG, with the involvement of relevant state governments led by the Vice President that meets regularly to drive the different initiatives and ensure effective and ongoing implementation.”

     

  • Okowa hails Buhari, Presidency over peace in Niger Delta

    Okowa hails Buhari, Presidency over peace in Niger Delta

    Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, on Friday hailed President Muhammadu Buhari’s government for the current peace in the Niger Delta region.

    He spoke with State House correspondents after meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    He said: “If you find out in the past few months, there has been peace in Delta State. So I wanted to appreciate his visit to Delta State because that definitely helped us in the peace process.”

    Speaking further on the Niger Delta, he said: “Definitely, it is very peaceful and we will continue to consolidate on the peace.”

    He also commended the Senate for the Maritime University Okerenkoko bill that passed third reading in the Upper legislative chamber.

    “Just yesterday, the bill for the Maritime University Okerenkoko passed third reading at the Senate. That is definitely a very strong plus for us.

    “We are also aware that a committee has been set up, led by the Minister of Education. My Deputy Governor is part of the committee to work out the processes to enable the Maritime University take off in October.

    “It is a step in the right direction, so I came to appreciate him and to discuss some other issues with him,” he said.

    On the progress on the Modular refineries, he said: “I think the process are being put in place.

    “You realise that the President has talked a lot about it and I believe the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and the NNPC have been working in that direction.

    “You know it is not something that you can just bring up all in one day or in one month.

    “I believe that the processes are being put in place to ensure that we have some of them in some of our communities in the creeks and in the Niger Delta generally,” he said.

  • Applying Alaibe’s recommendations for devt of Niger Delta

    Applying Alaibe’s recommendations for devt of Niger Delta

    The assurance, by the federal government, that all the oil bearing communities in the Niger Delta will enjoy equal treatment in the distribution of developmental projects is a soothing balm to the wounds of communities that have over the years suffered neglect by successive administrations in the various attempts at addressing the vexed issue of even development of the region.

    Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, reportedly gave the assurance not long ago when representatives of Gbaramatu Kingdom in Delta State paid him a courtesy visit.

    For far too long, communities in states that are derisively considered as ‘fringe members’ of the Niger Delta have suffered what can at best be described as official neglect in the distribution and siting of developmental projects, for the simple reason that they are not the ‘mainstream’ oil bearing states, and therefore do not suffer the same level of destruction of the environment and other negative consequences of oil exploration and production, like the latter.

    It is the reason Niger Delta has inadvertently come to be synonymous with states like Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Cross River and Edo. It is hardly remembered that Ondo, Imo and Abia states are also in the Niger Delta. In fact, reference is sometimes made to Delta, Rivers and Bayelsa as the so-called core Niger Delta. It doesn’t help matters, either, that people in these three states see themselves, rather arrogantly, as the ‘real Niger Delta’ people, through utterances and actions.

    But thank God for the Buhari administration. Recent actions of the government suggest that we are about to witness a significant departure from what has been the usual practice of concentrating developmental efforts on some selected sections of the Niger Delta, perhaps because all the noise, threats and actual destruction of oil installations and facilities by armed militants have been coming from those sections. The all-inclusive approach of the federal government to finding lasting solutions to the problems of the entire Niger Delta, not just a few states, is undoubtedly the panacea to the restiveness that has seen the country being held hostage, with the predictability of the rising of the sun.

    The government has started on a good note by engaging stakeholders in the Niger Delta in dialogues that are meant to chart the way forward for the region. One of such activities was the recent tour of the region by the vice president, during which he held town hall meetings with people from all segments of the society. Before then, President Muhammadu Buhari had held a meeting with representatives of the region in Abuja, at which the demands of the people of the region were presented in documentary form.

    If past experience is anything to go by, it will not be surprising to see the government follow up by setting up a committee to draw up a plan of action for implementing the demands of the region, both from the president’s meeting and the vice president’s various town hall meetings. There should be no need for this. The government has a working document to serve as guide for a systematic development of the region, one that would satisfy the yearnings, demands and aspirations of all the communities in the region.

    Timi Alaibe, a former managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), has been a one-man advocate for equitable distribution of resources and developmental projects in the region, irrespective of percentage of contribution to the national oil revenue, or degree of negative consequences suffered from oil exploration and production activities. For him, environmental degradation, like oil spill, does not recognize state or community boundaries. Nor is underdevelopment or unemployment concentrated in some sections of the region.

    The former presidential adviser on the Niger Delta Amnesty Programme does not lose any opportunity to speak on the issue of even development of the region wherever he finds it – at public lectures and media interviews.

    Alaibe’s ideas of what are required to ‘liberate’ the Niger Delta from the shackles of underdevelopment and poverty, quite lofty as they come, are encapsulated in the Niger Delta Development Master Plan that he personally authored. The document is a guide for the systematic and sustained development of the region, quite different from the periodic handouts that successive governments have been content to giving the people of the region.

    Though yet to be fully implemented, save for one of the pillars that deal with demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration of former militants, the Master Plan has remained largely unused. Perhaps the document waited for the Buhari administration that is designing a new approach to solving the problems of the region, to be fully implemented.

    Is it a coincidence that the Senate has just exhumed the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) that had remained buried in its closets for nearly a decade, just when the federal government is trying to design new initiatives to tackle the Niger Delta problem? Perhaps it is not. The PIB and the Niger Delta Master Plan find common grounds in some areas, such as joint ownership of oil infrastructure by communities, which would make them assume full responsibility for its security. There is also the issue of involving oil bearing communities in profit sharing of oil proceeds. Both documents are on the same page on this.

    The federal government must walk its talk by ensuring even distribution of developmental projects in the entire Niger Delta region, which is in line with Alaibe’s recommendations in the Master Plan. This is what would give every community and hamlet in the region a sense of belonging. Some sections should no longer be made to feel that they are the special children that deserve to be pampered, while others pick the crumps that fall from the table.

    If the time has come for the people of the Niger Delta to feel differently (positively) about living in the area that serves as the goose that lays the golden egg, that feeling should spread everywhere.

     

    Ms Adeyeye, an environmental rights activist, lives in Akure

     

     

     

  • Bayelsa backs FG’s decision to set up modular refineries

    Bayelsa backs FG’s decision to set up modular refineries

    The Bayelsa Government on Wednesday applauded Federal Government’s decision to set up modular refineries, saying it was a good move to fortify the nation’s economy.

    The commendation is in a statement by Mr Daniel Iworiso-Markson, the Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Seriake Dickson.

    Iworiso-Markson stated that Dickson made the commendation at the ongoing Oil and Gas Trade Conference (OTC) in Houston, Texas, United States of America.

    Dickson said that the refineries, when established, would go a long way to make jobs available for the teeming youths not only in the Niger-Delta but Nigeria at large.

    The governor expressed optimism that the refineries, when fully on stream, would curb the illegal refining of petroleum products and reduce casualties associated with it.

    He noted that the government of Bayelsa was fully in support of the establishment of the modular refineries.

    “We have fully embraced the move; the Bayelsa Petrochemical and Refinery Company Limited is ready to partner with willing investors to ensure that the refineries are established and running.

    “Bayelsa, being the home of oil and gas in Nigeria, provides strategic investment opportunities, as well as conducive and secure environment to drive investment in that sector.

    “The state’s participation in the OTC is strategic, as it will afford us the opportunity to meet and leverage on prospective investors on various opportunities provided by government.

    “Bayelsa has abundant gas feedstock to power the modular refineries.

    “It is interesting to note that we already have more than enough gas in abundance to deliver the three modular refineries; the state is good to go.”

    On security, the governor assured prospective investors that investments would be fully secured and allayed fears expressed on threats to destruction of pipelines.

    Those at the OTC event were Sen. Foster Ogola and Hon. Fred Agbedi, Chairman House Committee on Gas.

    Others are Hon. Henry Ofongu, the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Serena Dokubo-Spiff, the Bayelsa Commissioner for Investment, Trade, Commerce and Industries and Mr Kemela Okara, the Chief Economic Adviser‎ to the governor.

  • 60 policemen benefit from U.S. anti-bomb training

    The U.S. on Monday  began an anti-bomb training for 60 Nigerian police officers to equip them to clear explosives from reclaimed communities in the North-East and ensure safe return of citizens.

    The Inspector-General of Police (I-G), Mr Idris Ibrahim, said at the commencement of the four-week training in Lagos that the communities are in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

    The I-G who was represented by the Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG), Operations, Mr Joshak Habila, said that the training would also improve the capacity of personnel to be deployed to the Niger Delta.

    According to the I-G, the officers are from the Explosives Ordinance Department (EOD).

    “These trained personnel are to ensure that the communities were cleared of all explosives for the safe return of displaced persons to their lands.

    “We are about going into another phase in the operation; our responsibility is to assure displaced persons of safe return to their communities.

    “We will also enlighten the civil populace on bomb detection so that whenever they see unfamiliar items, they will not touch them,’’ Ibrahim said.

    He said that it was on record that mines buried by Boko Haram in the North-East were more than those buried during the civil war.

    “We are fortunate to have U.S. anti-bomb experts to come and train us on how to detect buried mines.

    “The police have given a good account of themselves in the past, particularly, in detecting and detonating Improvise Explosives Ordinance.

    “We must take advantage of this training because we will soon deploy those trained to the affected areas on post-blast investigation.

    “It is our duty to identify remnants of these explosives and take them safely for analysis with a view to detecting where they were manufactured and who manufactured them.

    “For the trainees, they should bother about chemical, biological and nuclear weapons, which are the new threats globally,’’ Ibrahim said.

    One of the facilitators, Jon Demarthino from the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Assistance Group, commended the trainees for their gallantry.

    Demarthino, who said that the training would be hard and tasking, urged the participants to give it their best in order to achieve the desired results.

    He expressed the optimism that the training would positively impact on the police and the country.

    He urged the participants to extend the knowledge gained to their colleagues.
    “There is no way we will train all Nigeria Police personnel at a time.

    “However, with this 60, we believe it will spread round to a greater percentage of the force,” he said.

    Earlier, the Commissioner of Police, EOD, Chika Maidama, hailed the I-G and the Americans for the training, hoping that it would deepen the officers’ knowledge.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the participants are from the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) to that of Superintendent of Police (SP).

  • Ijaw groups, elders warn against resuming violence in Niger Delta

    Ijaw groups, elders warn against resuming violence in Niger Delta

    Prominent Ijaw groups and elders have asked youths in the Niger Delta to forget any plan to resume hostilities in the Niger Delta region.

    The leaders insisted that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration had shown some positive signs and must be allowed to implement its vision to develop the region.

    The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide and the Ijaw National Congress (INC) said instead of resorting to violence, the region had opened a new chapter of constructively engaging the government to ensure it fulfilled all its promises.

    Speaking in separate interviews, the IYC President, Mr. Eric Omare, said since President Buhari had made promises, the best the region could do was to impress it upon his administration to fulfill them.

    He said: “I do not think that it has got to that level where people will resort to threatening to bomb oil facilities again. Government made promises but our duty for now is to remind government of its promises towards the region and insist that government should fulfill its promises.

    “But to threaten attack or resort to a militant approach to force government fulfill its promises, l don’t think is the best approach for now. We have never encouraged militant dimension or use of force in our agitation. We advise those that threatened violence to adopt peaceful means”.

    Also, the Chairman, INC, Central Zone, Chief Kennedy Odiowei, asked the youths to remain calm insisting that Buhari with his track record of integrity, would fulfill his promises to the region.

    He said: “We are not in support of violence because the Federal Government is talking to the region. The Vice-President came and toured the Niger Delta. They have seen the plight of the region and the people.

    “The government is very proactive to look into the issues of the Niger Delta so we are not in support of any threat to renew attacks. We are saying that everybody should keep calm and drop their arms”.

    “The Vice-President made some serious policy statements including asking all the oil companies to relocate their headquarters to the Niger Delta region. It is a welcome development. So let us wait and see what the government could do”.

    But the immediate past President of IYC, Mr. Udengs Eradiri, observed that the tempo which Vice-President Yemi Osibanjo pursued negotiation with the region dropped immediately Buhari returned from his overseas trip.

    He, however, said it should not be an excuse for anybody to contemplate resuming attacks on oil installations adding that he had been talking to aggrieved youths to forget the idea.

    He said: “I have been traveling up and down trying to talk to the boys because since the President came back from his travel, everything seems to have nosedived. The tempo with which the vice-president was going was commendable by everybody.”

    “The vice-president was using the right words and talking as a leader. But since the President came back, it has been difficult to continue the momentum and keep up the tempo. Nigeria needs peace.

    “We are not expecting Buhari to solve the Niger Delta problems totally because it didn’t start from his time. We are looking forward to the plans that the Vice-President had put in place. It is very commendable.

    “He talked about putting the illegal bunkerers together to form cooperatives so that their activities can be incorporated into government. He talked about modular refineries, the maritime university and a whole lot of issues that were raised”.