The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has called on the Federal Government to conduct a forensic audit and investigation into the commercial bid rounds conducted under the immediate past leadership of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), alleging irregularities in the allocation of oil blocks and marginal fields.

The Niger Delta socio-political organisation said the audit would pave the way for a more transparent and equitable allocation process. It also demanded that a substantial percentage of oil blocks and marginal fields be reserved for indigenous companies owned by Niger Delta people.

PANDEF specifically called for at least 60 per cent of the nation’s oil blocks and marginal fields to be allocated to Niger Delta-owned companies, arguing that such a policy would give the people of the region a greater sense of inclusion in the exploitation of resources found in their communities.

The group maintained that despite being the source of Nigeria’s oil and gas wealth, the Niger Delta continues to bear the environmental and health consequences of oil exploration without commensurate economic benefits.

According to PANDEF, gas flaring, oil spills and environmental degradation have polluted rivers and groundwater across several communities in Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom states, leaving many residents without access to clean water while exposing them to serious health risks.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by its National Spokesman and Publicity Secretary, Chief Dr Obiuwevbi Ominimini, the group questioned the ownership structure of oil blocks and marginal fields, insisting that very few are controlled by Niger Delta indigenes.

“We call for a minimum of 60 per cent of the total oil blocks and marginal fields to be reserved for companies owned by Niger Deltans. This is one of the surest ways to give the people of the region a sense of belonging, considering that their resources are used to sustain the entire country,” the statement said.

PANDEF further argued that proceeds from gas flare penalties should be channelled towards addressing the environmental and health challenges confronting oil-producing communities rather than being expended elsewhere.

The organisation also renewed its call for resource control, saying Nigeria’s current revenue-sharing arrangement deprives oil-producing communities of the benefits of their natural resources.

It recalled that when crude oil was discovered in Oloibiri in present-day Bayelsa State, then Prime Minister Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa reportedly congratulated the former Eastern Region on the discovery as an additional source of revenue, adding that the country’s federal structure had since been altered by successive military administrations.

The group also criticised the Federal Government’s handling of artisanal refining, arguing that rather than destroying local refineries, authorities should establish a legal and regulatory framework to register and regulate operators.

According to PANDEF, formalising artisanal refining would create jobs, improve local participation in the petroleum industry and reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

The organisation urged the Federal Government to pursue policies that promote environmental justice, equitable resource ownership and sustainable development in the Niger Delta.