By Our Correspondent
The Association of Itsekiri Staff in DESOPADEC (AISID) has rejected proposed DESOPADEC Law Amendment Bill 2015 that has been submitted to the House of Assembly by His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Delta State, Senator (Dr.) Ifeanyi Okowa.
In a press release issued after a critical stakeholder’s meeting of the Association, they asserted that “after a thorough examination of the DESOPADEC Law Amendment 2006; DESOPADEC Law Amendment Law 2010; the relevant section of the 1999 constitution (as amended) on the principle of derivation; the Local Content Act 2012; the NDDC Act 2000 and the proposed amendment Bill 2015; the following resolutions were reached.”
i. That the DESOPADEC fund is not from any other revenue sources of government order than crude Oil/Gas. We demand that the principle of derivation as enshrined in section 162 of the constitution be applied to ensure that only Oil /Gas producing communities are made the beneficiaries of DESOPADEC.
ii. That in line with the principle of derivation, as clearly defined in the 1999 constitution, (as amended), every member ethnic nationality in the commission should be entitled to exactly what they produce. Hence, we demand that production quantum should not only be inserted in the law but should be the basis upon which everything in the commission is shared.
iii. We demand that like as it is in the NDDC law, which this bill is being modeled after, the position of the Managing Director should be rotated among the Oil producing ethnic nationalities on the basis of production quantum, with the ethnic group with the highest production taking the first shot while the position of the Chairman of the commission be rotated like in NDDC in alphabetical order.
iv. It is ironical to ask that the representatives of the oil producing ethnic nationalities on the board be appointed on part-time basis while the Executive Directors and the Managing Director are on full time basis. This is not what is obtainable in NDDC. Hence, we reject the inclusion of part-time commissioners in DESOPADEC
v. We also reject the appointment of Executive Directors on the basis of senatorial District considering the facts that senatorial districts are just a mere political structure which in the case of Delta South Senatorial District that houses the Itsekiris, Ijaws and the Isokos which produce about 78% of the total Oil/Gas money to be shared, will only have one Executive Director to fight over, while the other two senatorial districts that are essentially homogeneous and do not produce more than 22% will have one Director each. We therefore demand that at least each oil and gas producing ethnic nationality should have one Director each and one commissioner each.
vi. We also demand like in the NDDC, that there should be a provision for the establishment of an advisory council for DESOPADEC, where each ethnic nationality shall have one traditional ruler each in such council.
vii. We demand that the funding of DESOPADEC which is 50% of the 13% derivation accruing to Delta State should be increased to at least 60% in line with the Local Content ACT (LCA) and should be drawn on the first line charge of the fund paid to the state from the federation account.
The press release which was signed by the Chairman of the workers body, Mr. Weyinmi Agbeteyiniro, Barr. Gabrial Eyewuoma (Secretary) and Mr. Francis Lube (Member) was copied to:- The Itsekiri leaders of Thought, Ijaw leaders of Thought, Isoko leaders of Thought and Legislators from Delta South Senatorial Districts.
