Expert, NAWOJ Urge Speedy Passage Of PIB

An expert in the petroleum industry, Dr Israel Aye, says the two  proposed commissions for regulation of the upstream and downstream activities in the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) will allow transparency and boost nation’s economic growth.
Aye made the assertion on Monday at a workshop organised by the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), in conjunction with other organisations in Lagos.
The theme was: “The Implications of the PIB on Gender in Nigeria”.
The two commissions in the Bill are the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NURC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority.
Aye, in a presentation on “Overview of the Global and Local Contexts Underlying the Reform of the Oil and Sector – How Does the PIB Respond”, said the commissions would enable Nigerians to  interrogate every process involved in decision making.
He said the commissions would come up with legal frameworks that allow people to be held accountable for their involvement in decision making.
Aye decried the belief that implementation had always been the problem hindering so many policies, saying effective frameworks would deter sabotage.
He enjoined  women journalists to support the clamours for quick passage of the PIB.
According to him, PIB should focus more on governance, administration and fiscal in terms of doing business and its effectiveness on the host communities.
The expert said the oil price could collapse in the next 20 years and stopped being an hot commodities just like the era of coal as means of revenue.
He said the countries were putting new acreages on the market due to the looming threat.
“The shock that it can create for the development is what the government should focus on,” Aye said.
According to him, Petroleum industry faces five major challenges, and they are COVID-19, climate change, ever cheap energy storage, ever cheap renewables and green hydrogen.
“How is the world responding? The response is confusing and almost some of the countries are doing bilateral agreement,” he said.
Speaking, Mr Joe Nwakwue, Partner, Zeea Advisory and Consulting, called for some suggestions to be included in the PIB.
Nwakwue, in a paper titled, “The PIB and Opportunities for Addressing Gender-Related Issues”, said the interest and representation of women in the industry were limited in ways that were mostly unplanned.
“Consequently, there must be deliberate efforts to ensure that women’s right and interest are identified, considered and protected across the spectrum of legal policy.
“We need to be very specific; some specific provisions should trigger action toward addressing these challenges,” he said.
Nwakwue said there was need to address this age long inequalities and equalities in the industry.
Also, Vice President, NAWOJ, B Zone, Mrs Bola Akingbehin, enjoined the National Assembly to speedily pass the Petroleum Industry Bill.
Akingbehin also tasked women journalists to support the efforts in ensuring issues that concern female were well canvassed in the PIB.