Vandalism: CSO, Rep, Others Demand Repeal of Law Shifting Liability to Oil Communities in PIA

•NUPRC: 43 suits delaying setting up of community trusts

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Some stakeholders in the oil and gas industry, including the Ford Foundation-funded Spaces for Change (S4C), the Chairman of the House Committee on Host Communities, Dumnamene Dekor and the King of Ekpetiama Kingdom in Bayelsa, Bubaraye Dakolo, yesterday called on the authorities to expunge section 257 (2) from the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

Essentially, the section deals with conditions under which a host oil community may lose its 3 per cent financial entitlements and shifts the liability for damage, vandalism or sabotage to the communities, which are expected to repair or replace damaged oil facility, and operating expenditure incurred during production shutdown.

But in a media presentation in Abuja detailing the report of a two-day stakeholders technical session held in Port-Harcourt, the chairman of the House Committee promised to work with his colleagues to see that that part of the law is repealed.

The event also marked the launch of a progress report on host communities fund document  titled, “Transitioning from GMOU to HCDT: Wins, Challenges, and Further Actions.”

According to Dumnamene, as a piece of legislation, the lawmakers will continue to look at the grey areas of the PIA, including the part that compels communities to protect pipelines or lose their funds.

He stated that the wellbeing of host communities is essential to Nigeria’s collective desire for a progressive and prosperous nation, since the oil and gas sector constitutes over 65 per cent of total government revenue and about 90 per cent of total export earnings.

Dumnamene argued that the country has failed to effectively deliver benefits of resource exploitation to host communities for nearly seven decades since the discovery of oil in Nigeria, stressing that this has had enormous consequences on the development of the oil and gas sector.

According to him, there have been some gaps and delays in the implementation of the provisions of the PIA concerning the establishment of the Host Communities Development Trusts (HCDTs), especially by some companies.

The lawmaker further informed that the committee has developed a strategic plan that will guide its programming for the period of the 10th National Assembly from 2023 to 2027.

In her remarks, the Executive Director, S4C, Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri, stated that the report examines the extent to which indigenous and international petroleum companies are living up to their statutory obligations to deliver  development to the oil-producing areas in Nigeria under the HCDT.

According to her, the HCDT replaces the previous benefit-sharing mechanism called the Global Memorandum of Understanding (GMOU) wherein oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria executed benevolent, or sometimes, negotiated agreements with their host communities.

 She said that what the report has done is to highlight the wins and challenges associated with HCDT implementation, the emerging good and bad practices, as well as the disparate experiences established by petroleum corporations for transitioning from GMOU to HCDT.

While some progress has been made, the executive director stated that there are also some practices which call for attention.

“Top on that list is the high volume of litigation and protests across oil producing communities and lack of due process and transparency in the nomination of community representatives serving on the governing bodies of the HCDTs.

“Repeal of Section 257(2) of the PIA which touches on sabotage and pipeline vandalism is long overdue. This section vests the responsibility of securing oil and gas installations in the hands of unarmed host communities — a duty which the military, Operation Delta Safe, Civil Defence, Police and pipeline surveillance contractors have failed woefully at,” the group said.

Also speaking, the Assistant Director, Host Communities Development Administration at the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Kingsley Ehiagwina, said that various court cases were stalling the progress in setting up communities’ trusts and incorporating others.

He said that a lot had been done including approval to incorporate 111 HCDTs, out of which 105 have been fully incorporated by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), while 52 accounts have been opened by the various HCDTs and 49 fully funded.

 “But we are inundated with a lot of litigations.  As I speak to you, 43 litigations are pending, and they are stalling the implementation and incorporation of HCDTs,“ he stated .

 Dakolo, in his comments, stated that the ‘criminalisation’ of host communities, in  section 257 of the PIA should be expunged, stressing that it will make the difference if the recommendation is implemented