The Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas (HOSCON) has called on the Federal Government to establish 13 per cent oils derivation presidential implementation committee and allow the host community to nominate peoples.
Its said that the peoples of the Niger Delta regions are suffering due to the non-implementation of the 13 percent derivation.
National Chairman of HOSCON, Dr Mike Emu made the call in Abuja during the 2023 Oil and Gas Stakeholders Festival with the theme: “Uniting Stakeholders-A Road Map for Energy Transition”.
He noted that the section 132, sub-section 2, cap 39 of the 1999 constitution as amended, made it very clear that 13 percent derivation is for the host community.
He said, “The Federal Government has tried. There are a number of billions that are in the budget of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, talk about 13 percent derivation that goes to the Niger Delta, about 40, 50 billion every month shared to the government of the oil producing states.
The three percent PIA that has been passed into law, one year, five months now, no implementation of it, unfortunately it is set law. I wonder what is actually happening.
“I may not major on the problem of illegal refinery, pipeline vandalization, or oil theft. But the people of the Niger Delta are suffering, there is no drinking water in the creeks”.
In her remarks, the convener, Oil and Gas Stakeholders Festival, Ms Faith Wilkinson, admonished host communities to embrace change and deviate from the old methods to the new methods of transiting into a better economy.
She said, “We are having post festival training, originally the programme was designed to come with training for women and youths in the oil and gas industry in energy transition.
“But what we are trying to do is after this, we are going to have training for the women and the youths to begin to engage them on issues that are related to the industry”.