February 23, 2010 02:14AM
Operators of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry should ensure that oil is used as agent of national development rather than impoverishment of the people, Acting President, Goodluck Jonathan, has said.
Mr Jonathan, who declared open the 10th Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Conference in Abuja, said a situation where a majority of Nigerians are denied the benefit of constant supply of electricity amid the capacity of the nation’s petroleum industry to guarantee uninterrupted gas supply is unacceptable:
“For Nigeria to be exporting natural gas and yet does not have the vital resource for domestic power generation is like a farmer who after a bumper harvest sells off all his produce, spends the proceeds on other material things and consigns the family to living in hunger. It is not and will never be a wise proposition,” he said.
He challenged oil companies to recognise their responsibility to be good neighbours to the people.
“We cannot live in darkness when we have a better option of a life under uninterrupted power supply. We must have electricity in Nigeria, and the oil and gas companies will have to partner with the government in delivering this to the Nigerian people within the shortest possible time,” he said.
The goal of the government, he said, is to ensure that the benefits of petroleum are seen to be enjoyed by all Nigerians, adding that the present administration has identified a number of critical areas that must be accomplished in order to usher in a new era for the oil and gas industry in the country.
Pass the bill
He said the primary task is to ensure that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), currently pending before the National Assembly, is passed into law as the new law in central to the energy sector reform agenda of the federal government.
Acknowledging that the nation’s petroleum industry cannot make any significant progress without an effective review of the existing petroleum laws, he urged lawmakers to expedite work on the passage of the bill, reiterating government’s commitment to implement its provisions when passed.
“The operation of the oil industry in the last 50 years threw up a number of social challenges, which if not addressed, will become an unacceptable diversion in the country’s march to development,” he said, pointing out that the amnesty programme was targeted at those who decided to pick up arms in protest against the oil industry.
He said the challenge of rehabilitation and reintegration would be met by the holistic development of the Niger Delta region, urging the erstwhile armed militant youths who heeded government’s call for them to lay down their arms for peace and progress that their sacrifice would not be rewarded with indifference and neglect.
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