By Our Correspondent
Delta State Government has appealed to Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas, (HOSTCOM) as well as its president generals and Community leaders to reconsider its decision and re-open the shut down oil facilities of Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) for operation.
The appeal was made yesterday by the Deputy Governor of Delta State, Barr. Kingsley Otuaro, at the intance of the state government at the Delta State Governor’s Annex, Ejeba, Warri, while addressing the president generals and community chairmen of the various host communities on the challenges lingering on between NPDC and HOSTCOM.
The state deputy governor noted that apart from the challenges between HOSTCOM and NPDC, oil companies is being saddled with a lot of internal issues owing by the reforms going on in the country today.
According to him, Some of the issues with the oil companies like NPDC is not only as a result of not caring, and not complying to the MoU reached with host communities, he noted that there are larger issues ranging from, the company been located at distance far away from where the oil is being produced, issues were the producing people are not being part and parcel of the management cabal of the company.
Barr. Otuaro noted that other underlying factor includes were you have others who come to operate as management staff of the company to do things without actually knowing the impact of oil production and exploration of the communities.
He noted that there has been serious problems with NPDC, since SPDC sold this facilities to NPDC, ” We will continue to meet and seek ways to solving this problems. I want to assure that as a government we must try our very best to keep on solving this problem. Some of the basic issues that were topical for discussion is how we can put a final nail on this NPDC problem that is reoccurring every now and then”. Barr. Otuaro stated.
The state deputy governor urged the President generals and community leaders to appreaciate and identify with the efforts of government by coming together to seek ways and resolve the issues that is causing the anger and shut down of oil facilities.
“We have come a long way, we have a common future and together we must salvage this common future, you cannot do it alone and government cannot do it alone, so there is need to be a great synergy among us in order to move forward. While frantic efforts are been made at the top level to resolve this matters, the communities and government must work hand in hand until the issues are resolved”. He stated.
Earlier, Dr Edegware David, President General, Igbide community, who spoke on behalf of the forum, noted that the communities decided to honour the state government and re-opened the oil facilities after the last meeting with an agreement by NPDC that it will meet the agreement reached.
Dr. Edegware noted that all the issues discuss, and agreement reached like, none payment of salaries to contractors as well as workers. The MoU agreement in terms of remenurattion among others has not
