By Oluwayemi Davidson, Warri
The Host Communities of the six Oil Producing ethnic nationalities in the Niger Delta region has expressed the hope that passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), before the end of this month, as promised by the National Assembly, will foster harmony between oil producing companies and the host communities.
Their chairman, Snr. Evangelist Babriel Isibeluo made the submission in Warri on Tuesday while fielding questions from journalists at the Olu of Warri Palace shortly after leading a delegation of the Host Communities on a condolence visit to the Itsekiris, over the transition of the immediate past Olu, His Majesty Ogiame Ikenwoli.
He said, “Once it is passed, it will change the narrative as per the relation between the oil companies and the host communities and what should be obtainable”.
The Host Communities chairman remarked that this “also will bring about the release of the gas flare penalty. And you know what over N200 billion can do to the region. It is not money meant to be shared but it is meant for remediation projects”.
According to him, as members of the host Communities, their expectations from government were very high but they realised that Government too has problem of paucity of funds.
“That affects the relationship as to what they are supposed to do. Our major challenge as at today is, without the passage of the PIB we cannot actually get it right”, he noted.
Commenting on the interim management of affairs of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to date, the host communities chairman stated that by so doing, the Federal Government has been “legalizing illegality”, adding that it was also “a ploy by somebody to siphon the Commonwealth of the Niger Delta”.
“The truth is what the Government has been practising is an aberration. You don’t legalize illegality. There is an act establishing the board. The act never provided for a sole administrator or interim management committee”, he stated.
He spoke further, “Then even if you are doing forensic audit, that does not mean you should not have a substantive board. The substantive board is not the board you are auditing, but the previous boards. It is just a ploy by somebody to siphon the Commonwealth of the Niger Delta”.
The Host Communities chairman also commented on the Fulani jihadists threatening anarchy in Delta State over the Government’s ban on open grazing, the Host Communities described the threat as ill advised.
“It is quite unfortunate that they will issue such threats. It is only a foolish man who boasts of his powers”, he said.