SENATOR LOKPOBIRI URGES NIGER DELTA OIL COMMUNITIES TO EMBRACE PEACE FOR PIA BENEFITS

Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Oil has called on oil-producing communities in the Niger Delta to maintain peace to fully benefit from the 3 percent Host Community Development Trust Fund (HCDTF) allocated under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA)

Senator Lokpobiri made the appeal on Thursday during the KEFFESO Stakeholders Forum held at the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB in Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa State.

The event, themed “Envisioning Sustainable Community Development in Niger Delta Host Communities: Challenges and Actualizing the PIA Paradigm Shift, was organized by KEFFESO HCDTF in collaboration with the ministry of petroleum resources, First Exploration and Petroleum development company limited and the NNPC.

The one day event also brought together key stakeholders in the oil and gas industry to discuss the implementation of the PIA and its impact on host communities.

The Minister urged host communities entangled in legal disputes to prioritize peace and resolve their differences through the arbitration forums established by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

He also charged host communities to collaborate with security agencies and oil and gas operators to safeguard facilities within their areas.

The Minister announced that another oil exploration company has expressed interest in working with the KEFFESO HCDTF due to its peaceful model and urged other Host Communities to adopt a similar model to foster sustainable development in the region.

In their separate remarks, His Royal Highness Theophilus Moses, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for KEFFESO HCDTF; Mr. Ademola Adeyemi-Bero, Managing Director of First Exploration and Petroleum Development Company Limited, represented by Mr. John Alamo, General Manager of Engineering; and other stakeholders emphasized the importance of the PIA and the Host Community Development Trust Fund.

Also, Engr. Seyi Omotowa, Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services, NUIMS, represented by Mrs. Edith Lawson, Deputy Manager of External Relations; Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive Officer of NUPRC, represented by Captain John Tonlagha, Executive Commissioner for Health, Safety, and Environment; and Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, Executive Secretary of NCDMB, represented by Barr. Naboth Onyesoh, Director of Legal Services, appealed for the equitable distribution of the PIA’s benefits across all host communities.

Reporting by Bright Okpo