The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Oil

  • NNPC urges NAPE to explore new oil basins

    NNPC urges NAPE to explore new oil basins

    The Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Dr. Maikanti Baru has urged the National Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) to explore the hydrocarbon potential of green frontier basins in order to increase depleting reserves in the country.

    Baru spoke when he received the leadership of NAPE led by its National President, Mr. Nosa Omorodion at the NNPC Towers, Abuja, yesterday.

    He described the association as a very important party in the oil and gas industry, helping in policy promoting as well as formulation, that have led to the growth of exploration of hydrocarbon resources in the country.

    He urged NAPE to play a key role in promoting public private partnership (PPP) in the exploration of some of the green frontier basins noting that the Federal Government would be willing to make provisions for incentives for such prospective investors.

    Earlier, Mr. Omorodion said the primary objective of the association was to promote excellent ideas in the exploration of hydrocarbon which has contributed to the passage of landmark legislations such as the Local Content Act.

    He congratulated the GMD on his appointment saying that NAPE will confer on him a honourary membership award which is the highest award from the association due to his outstanding track records in the oil and gas industry later this year.

  • OPEC, others for oil freeze forum

    OPEC, others for oil freeze forum

    Members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other oil producing countries are discussing an output-freeze deal next month in Algiers, Algeria as OPEC’s biggest producers are pumping flat-out, the group’s former president said.

    While a similar initiative failed in April, an agreement can be reached as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq and non-member Russia are producing at, or close to, maximum capacity, Chakib Khelil said in a Bloomberg Television interview.

    Khelil steered OPEC in 2008, the last time it implemented an output cut, which was announced in Algeria in December of that year. In an interview, former Qatari Energy Minister Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah was convinced there is a need for an accord.

    “All the conditions are set for an agreement,” Khelil said from Washington. “Probably this is the time because most of the big countries like Russia, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are reaching their top production level. They have gained the entire market share they could gain.”

    While oil prices have advanced since OPEC announced it would hold informal talks in the Algerian capital next month, analysts from UBS Group AG to Commerzbank AG doubt any freeze deal will be completed, and comments from Saudi Arabia and Nigeria have kept expectations low. Talks collapsed in April as Saudi Arabia insisted Iran would have to limit its production, a condition the country rejected as it ramped up exports previously curbed by sanctions.

    As producers are almost pumping at full-tilt, the impact of any accord to prevent further increases would essentially be “psychological,” Khelil said. That would nonetheless have a benefit for the market, according to the Algerian, who was also the country’s energy minister from 1999 to 2010. The global crude oversupply is already diminishing, and markets will probably reach “complete equilibrium” next year, Khelil said.

    Qatar’s Al-Attiyah, speaking by phone, said the re-balancing is proceeding slowly and there is a need for global producers to act together and speed up the process. He said it’s “really hard to say” whether anything will be agreed in Algiers.

    “OPEC and other producers need to do something because for the market to rebalance on its own that will take a lot of time,” Al-Attiyah said. “Even next year, we have to be cautious and not expect that the market will rebalance quickly.”

    Still, both former ministers agreed that a freeze, even if it’s only symbolic, would revive the bullish mood among oil investors and traders.

    “The freeze deal will not have a huge impact on fundamentals but it will help improve the market sentiments,” Al-Attiyah said. “At the end, a step taken is better than doing nothing.”

    Russia’s output hovers near an all-time high of 10.85 million barrel per day. With Russian output touching new heights, its Energy Minister Alexander Novak said his country was consulting with Saudi Arabia and other producers to jointly cap production “if necessary,” Arabic newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reported.

  • Searching for oil in the North

    SIR: I would want to use this opportunity to let the Federal Government, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation to go back to their records of the oil and gas discovered in OKWIJI in APA LGA of Benue State in the early 70s. Since the discovery, nothing has been done about it.

    Hence, I personally consider it a wonderful gesture by the Federal government to explore for oil not only in OKWIJI but other parts of the Northern Nigeria.

    I would suggest that the federal government set up an expert committee or delegate some oil exploration experts to Okwiji in Apa LGA of Benue State to see things for themselves without delay. I am ready to give further information any time I am called upon and can as well take either the federal government delegation, the Minister of Petroleum and the GMD of NNPC to Okwiji at their convenience.

     

    • Ngbede Samuel

    Ojantelle Ochekwu

    Apa LGA, Benue State.

  • OPEC, others head for oil output freeze

    OPEC, others head for oil output freeze

    Members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other oil producing countries are in discussion to strike an output-freeze deal next month in Algiers, Algeria as OPEC’s biggest producers are already pumping flat-out, the group’s former president said.

    While a similar initiative failed in April, an agreement can now be reached as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq and non-member Russia are producing at, or close to, maximum capacity, Chakib Khelil said in a Bloomberg Television interview. Khelil steered OPEC in 2008, the last time it implemented an output cut, which was announced in Algeria in December of that year. In a separate interview, former Qatari Energy Minister Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah was convinced there is a need for an accord.

    “All the conditions are set for an agreement,” Khelil said from Washington. “Probably this is the time because most of the big countries like Russia, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are reaching their top production level. They have gained the entire market share they could gain.”

    While oil prices have advanced since OPEC announced it would hold informal talks in the Algerian capital next month, analysts from UBS Group AG to Commerzbank AG doubt any freeze deal will be completed, and comments from Saudi Arabia and Nigeria have kept expectations low. Talks collapsed in April as Saudi Arabia insisted Iran would have to limit its production, a condition the country rejected as it ramped up exports previously curbed by sanctions.

    As producers are almost pumping at full-tilt, the impact of any accord to prevent further increases would essentially be “psychological,” Khelil said. That would nonetheless have a benefit for the market, according to the Algerian, who was also the country’s energy minister from 1999 to 2010. The global crude oversupply is already diminishing, and markets will probably reach “complete equilibrium” next year, Khelil said.

  • Delta oil communities allege padding of N28bn DESOPADEC budget

    Oil producing communities in Delta State, under the auspices of Delta Oil and Gas Stakeholders Group, have alleged that the government and House of Assembly are hijacking funds accruing to the Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC).

    The groups warning is against the backdrop of a controversy over the non-passage of DESOPADEC’s N28 billion 2016 budget barely four months to end of year.

    There were allegations that some principal officers of the Assembly demanded N1 billion  ‘allocation’ to facilitate the budget’s passage.

    DOGSG, in a statement by Dr Tagbiretse John, Bro Joseph Ebidenwei, Obakpo Goodluck and Gregory Eze, said they have credible reports that the lawmakers were “padding and balkanising the budget for selfish reasons”.

    They warned that an insurgence more destructive than the havoc by militants could be in the offing, if the government failed to release allocation for the commission to pay contractors and develop their communities.

    “We have watched with growing exasperation the systematic rot that has crept in and overtaken DESOPADEC since the administration took over in 2015. We can no longer sit and do nothing while a colossal conspiracy to cripple the only hope of oil producing communities in the state is unravelling before our eyes.

    “The reason for the comatose state of DESOPADEC is not far-fetched: the non-passage of the 2015 Budget of the commission, with barely four months to the end of the year cannot augur well.

    “If the government is effective and sincere, and the House of Assembly is doing its job, the 2016 budget would be in the implementation stage and the 2017 budget would have been in the final stages of its development.

    “It is a shame that the 2016 DESOPADEC budget is still ‘lost in transit’ and nobody knows what the budget looks like or how much is contained therein. Nobody knows if the N28 billion budget presented to the House in March remains or if it has been changed and how it has been altered.

    “In this era of ‘budget padding’, there are disturbing reports that the Monday Igbuya-led House is performing abracadabra with the budget, while it is also passing like ping-pong from the Government House to the House of Assembly. Nobody is able to account for its whereabouts today.

    “This is a carefully orchestrated plot to deny fund to the commission and the oil producing areas. It is too much of a coincidence that the saga of DESOPADEC ‘Missing Budget’ started after a principal member of the House of Assembly was accused of demanding a N1 billion to facilitate its passage.

    DOGSG warned that “in view of the precarious security challenges in the Niger Delta region, there is need to avoid giving violence-prone elements opportunities to unleash further havoc on oil facilities and our communities because the deliberate decimation of DESOPADEC by the powers that be in the state is an invitation to anarchy.

  • Not just about oil

    For some reason, recent media interview by former President, Goodluck Jonathan after a visit to Aso Rock, is bound to elicit considerable public interest. For one, it has taken long since he spoke to the press especially given the travails of his party in the campaign against corruption.

    And for another, the resumed militancy in the Niger Delta culminating in the destruction of oil facilities and threats of secession are issues the public is keen in knowing his take on them. At the last count, two militant groups from that region have threatened to declare a republic of their own.

    It was therefore little surprising that journalists’ questions centred round these key national issues. But while he refused to entertain questions on the war against corruption contending that the matter was before the courts, he was very forthcoming on the militancy in that region.

    He said he has been liaising with traditional rulers and other key leaders of the Ijaw ethnic nationality to ensure that peace reigns in the country. He must have also gladdened the hearts of those who believe in the indivisibility and non-negotiability of the Nigerian sovereignty when he told reporters that there is no alternative to a united Nigeria. But then, he is not expected to say anything to contrary to a country he presided over its affairs for six good years.

    That the question arose in the first instance is suggestive of one or two things. The first is that as a former president from that region, he can neither feign ignorance nor appear nonchalant about such a serious national challenge with dire repercussions to the national economy. That is not all, there are speculations stemming from events of the last elections, that the resurging militancy may be remotely linked to his fate in that election.

    For any of these possibilities, his views would be much sought after in the current impasse in that region. And he did not disappoint those who reason along this line.

    Hear him, “those of you who have followed my talks when I was here, my emphasis is that we need a united Nigeria, and I always emphasized that Nigeria is great not just about the oil, so many countries produce more oil than Nigeria and nobody notices them. We are great because of our size, the human resources we have, the diversity we have, if we fragmentize the country into small components, we will be forgotten by the world.”

    The above statements are not only loaded but equally weighty. They are bound to mean different things to different people depending on the prism from which they are viewed. He said we need a united Nigeria and Nigeria is great not just because of oil but other potentials it is endowed with. And that there are many countries that produce more oil than Nigeria but do not command the political weight and significance Nigeria commands. These are statements of fact.

    In a way, he has not only assuaged the feelings of those who believe in the continued unity and indivisibility of the country but underscored the point more succinctly that Nigerian unity is not just all about oil. By highlighting such critical variables as size, human resources and diversity, he also seeks to give accommodation, sense of belonging and relevance to all groups in the enterprise despite the primacy of oil as the main source of our revenue earnings.

    By way of extrapolation, he was saying that every group has something to contribute to this unity in diversity. As such, those who take to militancy and sabotage of oil installations to press home their grievances should have a rethink as Nigeria is not just all about oil. That would gladden the hearts of sections that have been at the receiving end of scathing criticisms for not contributing or contributing little to the common wealth.

    If the above satisfies the expectations of the pro-establishment, it may come as a huge disappointment to the oil bearing communities because of its reductionist undertone. For, Jonathan runs the risk of being accused of attempting to narrow down the grievances of the Niger Delta people to the fact that they produce oil. That is why he reminds them that there are many countries that produce more oil than Nigeria that are of little consequence in world politics. If that is correct, it is only logical that the weight assigned to this country cannot be solely predicated on its status as an oil producing country. That conclusion cannot be faulted.

    But it is one thing to contend that oil is not the only source of strength for this country and entirely different kettle of fish to convey the impression that the crisis in the Niger Delta is all about oil. That would be a very simplistic perspective of the matter. It is not just about oil or claims for its control. It has to do with glaring injustice and systemic inequities in the country which easily finds expression in the despoliation of the environment of the oil producing communities to which our leaders turn blind eyes to.

    Those communities have not said other parts of the country have no stake in that resource which mother-nature bountifully endowed at their backyard. Their complaints arose in the first instance due to the devastation and degradation of their environment by the oil producing companies without giving a hoot to their well-being. So if we are serious in locating the main source of grouse of the Niger Delta people, it has its roots in the type of leadership we have had in this country- a leadership that has been anything but nationalistic.

    There are off course issues relating to the distribution of oil blocks and the wealth accruing from oil revenue. In these, the Niger Delta people feel largely shortchanged. So it is not just about the ownership of oil but the injustice and hardship arising from its exploitation and distribution. And it will be wrong to think that the oil bearing communities are not entitled to express their views on these even as ordinary citizens.

    Before now also, they have been very vocal in agitating for some form of restructuring to place the country in a better stead to withstand the challenges arising from discontent of the disparate groups. So, the failure to restructure is fundamental to the resurging militancy rather than any obsession with their reality as oil producing communities. Those who are vehemently opposed to restructure are vicariously liable for the continuing systemic dysfunctions that have not allowed this country witness peace. Good a thing, former military Head of State,Yakubu Gowon has said there is nothing wrong with restructuring if it is done within the contest of one Nigeria. All the proposals on restructuring including the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference which Buhari has put in a cooler are within the context of one Nigeria. Why the opposition to this visionary document?

    There is also the weird suggestion that restructuring cannot go hand in hand with the campaign against corruption. The two can in all honesty, proceed simultaneously. As a matter of fact, restructuring is more fundamental to the overall success of the war against corruption as it targets its roots than the current perspective that target symptoms.

    Agitations for self-determination by the Pro-Biafra movements, the resort to military warfare by the Boko Haram terrorists that have vowed to institute an Islamic state in this country and the scourge of the herdsmen are manifestations of deep seethed grievances and inadequacies which can be redressed through restructuring.  They have little to do with what the sections involved contribute to the national purse.  So it is not just all about oil or the right to it.

  • Concern on oil price recovery

    There are fears that oil demand has fallen short of expectations as production increases and rig counts rise, dampening hope of price recovery in the short term.

    Analysts said price recovery may take a year or more in the future because findings show that the demand response has been slower than bulls had hoped. U.S. drivers have covered fewer miles than expected this summer, and as they speed toward the Labor Day holiday in September, the overhang of gasoline in storage may put downward pressure on crude and refined product prices.

    “Right now, the only thing that would drive prices higher is robust demand,” said John Paisie, executive vice president at Stratas Energy Advisors, a Houston-based consultancy. The growth must be across the board, for products including distillates like diesel and jet fuel, as well as gasoline.

    “Demand just can’t be made up by one product,” he said, and demand for diesel has been lagging.

    Instead of seeing $60 a barrel, which would support an increase in production, the demand questions, and ongoing supply concerns, mean oil could fall further. “Demand is growing very moderately,” said veteran oil economist and independent consultant Phil Verleger. “There’s no real surge to it, call it the great moderation.”

    While gasoline prices have declined, the lower cost at the pump has only a moderate effect on consumer’s buying habits, Verleger said. Instead of racing out to fill their tanks, consumers are using the savings to pay down debt, he said.

  • ‘Oil giant’s scheme helped reduce HIV prevalence rates in Bayelsa’

    Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), operator of the NNPC/CNL Joint Venture (JV), has announced the launch of a $1.4 million, two–year project in Bayelsa State aimed at preventing the transmission of HIV from mothers to their newborn babies, PROMOT (II) project.

    The community–based Prevention of Mother-to-child Transmission project (PROMOT II) is coming on the heels of PROMOT (I), a four- year project, which was earlier implemented in Bayelsa State between September 2012  and March 2016 and to which Chevron committed $5.3 million. Both phases of the project are implemented in partnership with Pact, an international non–governmental organisation with active programming in Nigeria for more than a decade.

    The PROMOT (II) project was officially launched on July 12, 2016 by Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State, who was represented by Chief David Serena Dokubo-Spiff the Secretary to the Bayelsa State Government (SSG), at Ebbis hotel, Yenagoa, in Bayelsa State.

    The Bayelsa State Governor thanked Chevron for providing additional funds for the extension of PROMOT for another 2 years. “Chevron is a good Company and I commend the Firm for providing additional fund for the extension of PROMOT for another 2 years, in spite of the harsh economic climate.” He said. He noted that PROMOT (I) was a great success, as it contributed to the reduction of Bayelsa State’s HIV prevalence rates from 9.1 percent in 2010 to 3.8 percent by the end of the project’s third year in 2015.

    Chairman Managing Director, CNL, Clay Neff explained that the PROMOT (II) project is part of the Company’s Social Investment efforts in the Niger Delta. “Chevron invests in programs aimed at improving access to healthcare to support the communities where we operate. Working with partners globally and at local levels, we dedicate our capabilities, resources and people to support initiatives that build local capacity and deliver real, lasting gains in the fight against devastating diseases —particularly  HIV/AIDS” he said.

    Clarifying the reason for the project, Deji Haastrup, General Manager, Policy, Government and Public Affairs says; “Fighting AIDS is not our core business, but it is essential to the success of our business. As a company, we depend on a healthy society. We therefore, promote healthy communities and improved access to health care aimed at eradicating diseases.”

    The PROMOT (II) project, being implemented by Pact,  will focus on promoting health care-seeking behavior among women of reproductive age (15–49) – including those living with HIV- to utilize antenatal care (ANC) and Prevention of Mother-To-Child Transmission (PMTCT) services in 3 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Bayelsa State: Ekeremor, Brass and Southern Ijaw. Additionally, PROMOT (II) aims at strengthening community structures to advocate for accessible, quality ANC, PMTCT, and broader health services in Bayelsa State.

    Since the commencement of PROMOT (I) in 2012, over 386,000 people have been reached with HIV messages and 53,686 pregnant women were tested for HIV and received their results. Additionally, 670 people have been trained on the latest PMTCT approaches and techniques and over 300 HIV-exposed infants were tested at 6 weeks.

  • NRC and oil marketers

    •It is in the interest of both to work together

    Like many public establishments, the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) that used to be a place of pride to work a few decades ago went comatose due to neglect by the Federal Government which has a monopoly of rail transportation in the country, and corruption. However, with the rekindled interest of the Muhammadu Buhari administration in reviving the rail system, one would naturally expect oil marketers to grab the opportunity because of the burden that would be taken off them in transporting their products. They have been moving their products over long distances by road due to the poor state of rail infrastructure.

    However, the disclosure by the acting managing director of the corporation, Engr. Fidet Okhira, that the oil marketers have expressed worries over the integrity of NRC’s rail tracks and tankers, as well as what happens to the road trucks that they procured when rail transportation was unreliable, is troubling. Nonetheless, they are legitimate fears.

    Mercifully, the corporation said it has taken care of its own end by importing about 40 tank wagons even as it has worked on the integrity of its tracks and tankers. The other challenge concerning the fate of the trucks is also not insurmountable. A way must be found round it because transportation of products, fuel inclusive, especially over long distances is better done by rail. That is the way to go.

    Indeed, that would be the essence of government’s plan to link all sea ports in the country by rail. The Lagos-Calabar route, for instance, is targeting all sea ports. This means all imported products would be transported by rail. This will in turn free the roads, thus making them last longer, reduce accidents as well as the cost of doing business, among other advantages. Of course it would also lead to job creation since people must be employed to run the rail services.

    We will better appreciate the prospects of movement of fuel by rail when we consider that NRC can move 20 tank wagons at once, each with about 44,000 litres of fuel. This translates to about 880,000 litres which, according to Okhira, would go a long way in meeting the fuel needs of a city like Kano in a day. The maximum a tanker can carry is about 33,000 litres of fuel. With 880,000 litres per trip by rail, that is about 27,000 tankers off the roads.

    This appears tantalising. But, still, what happens to the road trucks that the marketers purchased to move their products when rail services were unreliable? These, as Okhira explained, won’t be useless. Rather, they could be used to move the products from, say Kaduna to Sokoto where rail cannot reach, after it would have been transported by rail from Lagos to Kaduna. We see some sense in this arrangement because, as we said earlier, it would take a lot of pressure off the roads.

    There are prospects in the collaboration between the NRC and oil marketers. The details can be worked out or fine-tuned. Indeed, it is not only oil marketers that should be encouraged to move their products by rail. Every organisation that is connected with importation of goods should be interested in partnering with the NRC to move their products.

    Since privatisation appears to be the way forward even for the rail sector, we urge that the ongoing process at the National Assembly to privatise the sector be accelerated. The statute that makes rail transportation a Federal Government prerogative has outlived its usefulness; it should therefore give way to allow private investors interested in the sector.

    It is good that the railway corporation has decided to employ locals as junior staff to maintain the rail tracks. It would not be a bad idea to extend this to senior cadres where suitable candidates exist to fill such vacancies in the areas to create a sense of belonging that is necessary for security of the infrastructure.

  • Who owns the oil? (2)

    The oil debate can also not be divorced from the complaints by Urhobo and Isoko leaders against what they see as the one-sided negotiation on how to solve the economic sabotage by the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA). These leaders believe government should treat the Avengers, which many believe are Ijaw, and others damaging the economy as criminals and not negotiate with them.

    One-time Secretary-General of the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) Chief Frank Kokori said he expected those involved in the destruction of the nation’s assets to be treated as criminals.

    The Urhobo and Isoko, speaking through the chairman of OML 30 Community Development Board (CBD), Morris Idiovwa, warned the Federal Government against dialoguing with those destroying oil and gas assets. They believe doing so can degenerate into a fresh round of ethnic wars in the region.

    Sensing marginalisation, some militants who are of Urhobo stock have threatened to also destroy critical oil and gas assets if that will get them the Federal Government’s attention. The Urhobo said they are the largest ethnic group and have more critical facilities in their domains  than the Ijaw, who  they feel have blackmailed  the government to talk to them by destroying some assets.

    Idiovwa said:”What we have been seeing in Delta State is terrifying; especially in the way a single ethnic nationality is taking over the identity of the entire Niger Delta.  What is happening is outright criminality and we, as the largest ethnic group in Delta State, are not in support of this.

    “We have never been criminals and we don’t want to be criminals. We believe the best way to approach issues is dialogue. But with what we are seeing now, the intelligence we are gathering and what is in the media, a set of people decided to take up arms and disrupt the existing peace in the Niger Delta region because of their selfish interest.

    “The Federal Government has already started inciting an ethnic crisis in Delta state because as we speak now, we have been receiving series of mails, SMS and calls from different regions and groups in Urhobo and Isoko.

    “My office is responsible for ensuring safety of life and property here and if the people are aware that the same advantage they have, in terms of assets and production, is what some people in another part are using to get the federal government to come to negotiate with them, because those people have taken to arms struggle and are destroying the assets in their areas, what would you expect from those who have been law abiding, calm and watched over the facilities in their domain?

    “So you want to disregard them because they have not taken up arms. This is one move we will resist. Government should tread carefully. We are not in support of any criminality by any set of people. We have not mandated Egbesu to negotiate for us, we have not mandated the Avengers, MEND, JNDLF or IYC to negotiate for us. We have not mandated any group to negotiate for the Urhobo or Isoko.

    “We are standing on our own and we are telling the Federal Government that whatever is done for any group should be replicated across the entire Niger Delta states or host communities that are producing, otherwise the outcome will be disastrous.”

    Another interesting part of the oil debate is known as resource control. The last National Conference put in place by Jonathan showed how serious and how difficult it is to resolve the questions around oil ownership.

    The Devolution of Power Committee of the National Conference agreed to retain the 13 per cent derivation fund for the oil producing states. Resource control exponent and ex-Akwa Ibom State Governor Obong Victor Attah spoke of how deliberations on derivation went.

    His words: “Some came to this Committee that dichotomy must be introduced; some insisted that payment on derivation must be reduced, while some want the states to own and operate all resources within their areas and only pay taxes to the government.

    “We went through all positions and it was unanimously agreed that the last position was not achievable because it is a constitutional issue and amendment must be made before that can be achieved because as it is now all minerals belong to the Federal Government.

    “Given that understanding, those people agitating for that dropped their position and opted for 50 per cent as minimum payment on derivation. This obviously seems like irreconcilable positions. Maturity and patriotism of the members came to play at this point as we recognised that there were so many mineral resources left unexplored which is causing discontent.

    “We also recognised that the 13 per cent given to community with the resource is not enough and some still want government to reduce it because it was felt that with the 13 per cent, the people are still impoverished because it was not judiciously applied.

    “More than anything, we felt that we must try and maintain the equilibrium that we have in this country today  so that there will be no loser or winners. At the end, everyone withdrew their positions and we reached a unanimous decision that a special fund must be set up to enable the country, with the participation of the states to develop the mineral deposits within their areas.”

    We all know what has happened to the report. But, let’s even assume it is implemented, it will still not solve the oil riddle. So, it is useless in this regard.

    For me, I think the debate about which ethnic nationality in the Niger Delta has more oil should be relegated. What makes sense to me is that each oil-bearing community deserves special attention. A documentary “Poison Fire,” shows that one and a half million tons of oil had been discharged into the region’s farms, forests and rivers since oil drilling began in 1956. The documentary also shows that hundreds of kilometers of rain forest have been lost to the oil spills. The spills have also led to deaths and diseases. So, it is just fear that these people who bear the brunt should also enjoy the spoils. And not just that, efforts must be put in place to ensure the brunt they bear is reduced to the barest minimum.

    I also believe oil has overshadowed everything. It has blocked our vision and made many of us unable to see beyond our noses. Even the Federal Government is so blinded and confused by oil and things are not moving as expected.

    The Federal Government, at the moment, has too much on its hands. To say the least, many of the things the central government gets enmeshed in now, such as construction of roads, water projects and so on, should be none of its business. Its focus should be more on Foreign Affairs and Defence.

    I must point out this important facts I came across about how oil revenue sharing has changed with time.

    In 1958, oil producing states were said to have retained 67.4 per cent of mining rents and royalties. The Federal Government got 20 per cent of mining rents and royalties. Non-oil producing states got 12.6 per cent.

    Twelve years later, the Gen. Yakubu Gowon administration passed Decree No. 13. Under the decree, oil producing states kept 45 per cent of mining rents and royalties. The Federal Government got 55 per cent and non-oil states got nothing.

    In1975, the late Gen Murtala Muhammed introduced Decree 6, which reduced what the oil producing states were getting to 20 per cent of mining rents and royalties. The Federal Government got the lion share of 80 per cent. Other states got nothing.

    After Mohammed’s assassination, Gen Olusegun Obasanjo, who took over from him, set up the Aboyade Technical Commission. This committee ceded all oil revenue to the Federal Government, which introduced the Consolidated Revenue Fund. The responsibility of the Fund was to share the money in the central purse to all states.

    In 1979, the Shehu Shagari administration set up the Okigbo Commission to review the sharing of oil revenues. The Commission retained the Obasanjo formula with some alterations. It introduced the use of parameters, such as population, land mass and equality in the sharing of the revenue.

    The constitution, I sincerely believe, should be amended to allow states own and operate all resources within their areas and only pay taxes to the central government. That done, all states can mine their resources and make money enough to develop their land and people. It makes little sense for all natural resources to belong to the Federal Government. Changing the status quo will in the long run reduce the do-or-die attention on the centre.

    My final take: Ijaw, Urhobo, Itsekiri,  Isoko, Ibibio, Efik and Annang need not be involved in oil ownership scrabble. Cooperative élan should be embraced by all. May be a way to start is to take to heart the injunction that the land and all therein belong to God. Since God has deemed it fit to situate them on mineral-rich enclaves, they should peacefully make the best of it. They should learn from the mistakes of the past and make the present and the future fantastic.