Niger Delta lawmakers call for 65% ownership of oil wells for the region
Tue Jul 19, 2016 02:44:pm National
3K By Buchi Obichie
South-East and South-South lawmakers have called on the Federal Government to review the ownership structure of oil wells in the country to allow for 65 per cent ownership by the people of the region.
This is in order to facilitate development in the Niger Delta.
Rising from the first parliamentary session of the South-East and South-South Houses of Assembly in Owerri, Imo State, over the weekend, the lawmakers also called for a quick passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, while condemning the criminal and nefarious activities of herdsmen.
They called for the establishment of a special task force in each Local Government Area, drawn from the various security agencies and Neighbourhood Watch, in order to keep the herdsmen in check and prosecute them when they commit crimes.
According to them: "The people of the Niger Delta region should possess at least 65 per cent of the oil wells contrary to the present ownership structure where less than 10 per cent of the oil blocks belong to our people."
"There is an urgent need for the Federal Government of Nigeria to put in place adequate machinery that would ensure direct payment of derivative oil funds into the hands of Niger Delta benefiting communities."
"Legislators of the Houses of Assembly in the South-South and South East can no longer watch helplessly as our region drifts aimlessly while our people walk the razor edge under the strain of impoverishment, environmental degradation, insecurity and uncertainty on the one hand and the destruction of oil/gas installations and the attendant consequences including their impact on the eco-system and the economy on the other hand."
They also called on the youths of the region to shun criminal practices, while also rejecting the proposed bill to establish and control grazing routes and reserves, which has been presented before the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly.
This is in order to facilitate development in the Niger Delta.
Rising from the first parliamentary session of the South-East and South-South Houses of Assembly in Owerri, Imo State, over the weekend, the lawmakers also called for a quick passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, while condemning the criminal and nefarious activities of herdsmen.
They called for the establishment of a special task force in each Local Government Area, drawn from the various security agencies and Neighbourhood Watch, in order to keep the herdsmen in check and prosecute them when they commit crimes.
According to them: "The people of the Niger Delta region should possess at least 65 per cent of the oil wells contrary to the present ownership structure where less than 10 per cent of the oil blocks belong to our people."
"There is an urgent need for the Federal Government of Nigeria to put in place adequate machinery that would ensure direct payment of derivative oil funds into the hands of Niger Delta benefiting communities."
"Legislators of the Houses of Assembly in the South-South and South East can no longer watch helplessly as our region drifts aimlessly while our people walk the razor edge under the strain of impoverishment, environmental degradation, insecurity and uncertainty on the one hand and the destruction of oil/gas installations and the attendant consequences including their impact on the eco-system and the economy on the other hand."
They also called on the youths of the region to shun criminal practices, while also rejecting the proposed bill to establish and control grazing routes and reserves, which has been presented before the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly.
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