Niger Delta happy over lawmakers renewed commitment to PIB – Okowa

Delta Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, on Monday said the people of Niger Delta are delighted to hear of the renewed commitment of federal lawmakers towards passing of the PIB.

Okowa stated this when he received on courtesy visit, the Co-Chairman, National Assembly Joint Committee on Petroleum Industry Bill, Rt. Hon. Mohammed Monguno and members of the committee at Government House, Asaba.

The governor expressed delight with the inclusion of the Host Communities Fund in the Bill, saying that the provision of the fund would make the people part-owners of the ventures and encourage them to secure oil facilities.

He acknowledged that the committee members were in the state “for a very important assignment, something that we have not been able to achieve as a county in the last 14 years.

“You have come obviously for a very important assignment, something that we have not been able to achieve as a county in the last 14 years. We are gladdened as people from the Niger Delta to hear both leaderships of the National Assembly speak about their commitment towards passing the PIB.

“If you do achieve it, your name will be definitely written in gold because for too long we have been talking about this bill and we are already endangering the oil industry.

“People are agitated towards the direction of the PIB and when there is an anticipation and action is not clearly taken, it leads to the loss of investment opportunities because people are worried about the direction of the industry.

He said “people have lost their lives, lost their source of living and the pain continues to increase on a daily basis, but we thank God that the dark days are over and there is an amnesty programme even though it is not being run as it was proposed by the Yar’ Adua’s administration.

“We hope that with the provision of the host communities’ fund, it will impact their lives and help them to live a sustainable life.” Okowa stated.

Earlier, Monguno who is the Chief Whip of the House of Representatives, said his team was in Delta in furtherance of the legislative processes leading to the passage of the PIB.

He said that the National Assembly was working closely with the Executive arm and other stakeholders to ensure the passage of the Bill.

“There is a need for us as a country to reform the oil and gas sector, especially as the world is moving away from fossil fuel to renewable energy and it is important we take advantage of the opportunities available,” Monguno said.

Caption:  Delta Governor, Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa (left) and the Chief Whip of the House of Representatives and Co- Chairman of the National Assembly joint committee Committee on PIB, Rt.Hon. Mohammed Tahir Monguno, during a courtesy call on the Governor in Government House, Asaba