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Expect robust PIB, Dogara tells Nigerians

By Terhemba Daka and Adamu Abuh (Abuja)
19 July 2016   |   2:13 am
Nigerians anxious over what shape the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) will finally take have no cause to worry, said Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara.
Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara PHOTO: TWITTER/DOGARA

Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara PHOTO: TWITTER/DOGARA

Nigerians anxious over what shape the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) will finally take have no cause to worry, said Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara.

At a National Stakeholders’ Summit on Petroleum Industry Reforms, organised by the House Committee on Petroleum in Abuja, yesterday, Dogara said the National Assembly is determined to draft a law for the industry in the best interest of the country.

He said: “The need to make consensus and lend a voice to long-suppressed agitations in the drafting and consideration of the Petroleum Industry Bill informed our decision to organise this summit.

“We are optimistic that this approach will provide the crucial platform to enable us cross-pollinate ideas and ventilate our positions on certain contentious issues, regardless how vexed they may be. You can rest assured that our work at the National Assembly is to do your good intention.”

The Speaker noted that the oil sector operates under an inadequate legal framework, with an inefficient and poorly maintained pipeline network and depot system. The result, he said, is that “Nigeria is both one of the world’s largest producers of crude oil and one of the world’s leading importers of petroleum products, a dependency that has enriched the elite at the expense of the increasingly impoverished masses.”

He added: “We are not unaware of the several failed attempts at redeeming the petroleum industry by our predecessors. The Petroleum Industry Bill has been down a long and tortuous road. Most of us have been co-travelers on the journey to pass the bill into law, and have the requisite experience to avoid any pitfalls ahead, hence this resolve to seek proper consultations with you and build confidence among us.

“The downstream runs on a system of subsidies until recently, and uniform pricing which has proved ineffective, in addition to being administered in a very opaque way. Shortages and inadequate supply have characterised the Nigerian downstream for over two decades, and can be described as an example of system failure.

“The upstream has not fared better either. Pipeline vandalism, large-scale environmental degradation, and the world’s highest levels of crude oil theft have been constants for several years. Decades after the advent of Nigeria’s petroleum industry, problems which led to host community agitations remain unaddressed and highly politicised, and the question of the extent to which revenues from the industry should be shared among the three tiers of government and the people remain, as do the content and limits of corporate social responsibility. These are all crucial issues that should be addressed to guarantee and ensure a stable polity in Nigeria.”

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