In Delta, Stakeholders Dialogue, Demand Strict Implementation of PIA

•Want oil coys compelled to obey laws, implement agreements with communities

Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba

Incisive dialogue has continued among stakeholders to strike and maintain a healthy balance in the relationship between oil bearing communities and major oil companies so as to engender a violence-free and peaceful operational environment for oil and gas exploitation in the Niger Delta.
There was near consensus at the Multi-Stakeholder State-Level Dialogue organised by a civil society group, Search for Common Ground (SFCG), held in Udu, Udu Local Government Area, an important oil producing part of Delta State, over the weekend, about the need for better implementation of the laws and regulations in the country’s oil and gas industry.
The dialogue was supported by the European Union (EU), with the collaboration of other organisations, including Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND).
The participants were united about the seeming failure of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) to live up to the expectation of addressing the abnormalities and injustice in the oil sector. They, thus, demanded a review of the Act to eliminate grey areas in the law, which currently left the oil host communities at the mercy of the oil multi-national companies.
The Udu dialogue on critical aspects in the implementation of the extant laws, particularly the PIA, engaged many oil host communities, traditional and community leaders, Civil Society Organisations (NGOs), Delta State Government, the state legislature, local government councils, as well as relevant federal government regulatory and security agencies.
The theme of the two-day event was, “Strengthening Accountability between Communities and Oil Companies.”
The stakeholders also examined what had constituted the accountability lapses in the implementation of PIA and other agreements between the oil companies and the oil-bearing communities.
Participants said there was an urgent need for oil companies and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to be more transparent and accountable in the computation and release of statistical figures, to enable the communities know precisely how the three per cent accruing to them in the annual budget was being arrived at by the Host Community Development Trusts under the PIA.
At the moment, calculations of the respective accruals were shrouded in mystery, as the oil bearing communities were merely told that a certain amount was allocated to them as their share in the budget with the establishment of Host Community Development Trusts.
Following several hours of deliberation on modalities towards addressing the identified lapses in accountability between the oil companies and communities, the stakeholders agreed to liaise with the communities and other relevant stakeholders with a view to communicating their viewpoints and positions to the National Assembly.
Chairman of Udu Local Government Area and former Commissioner for Oil and Gas in Delta State, Hon. Vincent Oyibode, presented a broad-based lecture, titled, “Dialogue Between Communities and Oil Companies in the Niger Delta Region,” in furtherance of the SFCG broader project, a community-centred approach to transforming criminality and violence in the Niger Delta.
Oyibode stressed the need for the communities to continue on the peaceful trajectory of dialogue and collaboration in their relationship with the oil companies and the government at different levels.
He stated that dialogue, trust, and mutual respect remained critical in sustaining peaceful relations between oil companies and their host communities.
The former commissioner attributed some of the challenges in the oil sector to the Land Use Decree of 1978, which he said actually “enslaved the Niger Delta region”.
He stated that past experiences of oil companies reneging on various agreements and shirking their corporate social responsibility had created tension and escalated unrest, particularly in host communities.
Nonetheless, the approach – in the spirit of Search for Common Ground – should always be anchored on peaceful resolution, proactive leadership, and finding common ground, Oyibode counselled.
He said, “True peace can only be achieved when oil companies and host communities see themselves as partners in development rather than adversaries; so, there must be collaboration rather than confrontation.”
Secretary to the Delta State Government,
Dr Kingsley Emu, who was represented by an aide, stated that there was a symbiotic relationship between peaceful environment and sustained oil production in the Niger Delta, hence, the promotion of peace should be an all-embracing process.
According to Emu, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State has demonstrated serious commitment to peace in many ways, including “institutionalising frameworks, such as the Office of the Special Adviser on Peace and Conflict Resolution”, which is currently headed by Chief Edwin Uzor.
Deputy Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Arthur Akpowowo, who chaired the occasion, stressed the need for dialogue and collaboration, but added that diversification beyond oil will ensure long-term sustainability in interrelationship.
A traditional ruler, His Majesty, Dr Matthew Ediri Egbi, Owahwa II, the Okobaro of Ughievwen Kingdom in Ughelli North Local Government Area, urged the federal government, National Assembly, and other stakeholders to prevail on the major oil companies to respect the communities and implement PIA provisions, as well as honour agreements with oil communities.
A representative of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun (FUPRE), at the event, Dr Omonigho Otanocha, highlighted youth capacity building through education and vocational training as the best way to go in addressing many of the ills in the oil and gas sector vis-á-vis greater community participation in actual oil production.
Dr Kenneth Obeibiri of the National Oil Spills Regulations Agency (NORSRA) stated that anything that brought people together to explore common ground for sustainable peace was a welcome development. Obeibiri urged the people to relate as stakeholders.
He said, “I believe we have enough laws; so, there is need for us to relate as stakeholders. You can’t talk about reconciliation without forgiveness. Where there is forgiveness, reconciliation can take place and accountable leadership and sustained peace is possible.”
Sub-component Manager of Search for Common Ground, Mr. Solomon Adejo, explained that the programme was designed “to foster peace, dialogue and collaborative solutions to communal issues that affect peaceful coexistence in the Niger Delta and Nigeria at large”.