Since the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) was passed into law, leaders have lamented that the OPEX, which accrued to the host communities to enable them carry out projects in their areas, cannot be accessed.
The leaders, who expressed discontentment during a town hall meeting organised by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) for HCDTS, multinational oil companies and traditional rulers in Bayelsa State, urged the regulatory body to ensure that host communities are not shortchanged.
In his opening remarks, the National President, Host Communities Producing Oil and Gas (HOSTCOM), Benjamin Tamaramiebi, described the fact that the PIA is yet to be fully implemented in the Niger Delta oil producing communities, years after it was signed into law, as shameful on the part of the Federal Government.
He said: “We have a meagre three per cent; but the issue is that the three per cent have not been implemented. After two and a half years of the PIA, have the communities really impacted with this three per cent? That is the question. The first time we heard they are doing everything possible to ensure that they start the implementation was six months ago. Two years later, nothing has been done. It has been one story or another.
“The question is, are these sectors deceiving us or is the government deceiving the communities. These are small grants that are supposed to be coming in to keep the people high. It is because of the PIA and the three per cent that all other social responsibilities have been suspended. So, we keep waiting, believing that the big fish will roll into our table, and at the end of the day we will see nothing.
“How can we get our community to benefit? The reason we came together to ask questions now is that there is a law binding us. We will keep pressurising the head of the regulatory agency to tell us why they are not implementing it. Some HDCTs have received funds, and some have not. We want to know exactly what the problem is.”
