Oil wells tear Ali, Ezeife apart

A slight disagreement ensued yesterday at the floor of the National Conference over the ownership of oil deposits in Anambra Basin as the former governor, Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife and the former Chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) openly traded words on the ownership of the oil wells in the basin.
Chief Ezeife while contributing on the debate of the report of the committee on Devolution of Power, co-chaired by Obong Victor Attah and Alhaji Ibrahim Commassi which proposed that a special fund be created to develop mineral resources in the country He said that his effort has led to the discovery of crude oil in commercial quantity in Anambra state, while urging the conference to recognize Anambra state as an oil producing state.
On the 13 percent derivation retained for Niger-Delta by the committee, Chief Ezeife said that the South-South region should not be allowed to go empty handed and suggested that 25 percent should be given to the region.
“In 1993 as the governor of Anambra state I registered Anambra Petroleum Cooperation and every governor has invested on it. Today we have oil in commercial quantity in Anambra state. I move that the conference should recognize Anambra state as oil producing state.”
“On the issue of derivation, South-South should not be made to go empty handed as their people will ask them what they brought back from the conference. I suggest we better give them 25 percent.” He stated
But in a swift reaction, Dr. Ali Ahmadu, who raised a point of observation while opposing Ezeife’s position on the location of the crude oil, said that Ezeife was uninformed on the whole issue playing out on the crude oil discovery, adding that the oil belonged to Kogi state.
He pleaded with the conference to dismiss Ezeife’s information on the oil as misleading.
“I want to state categorically that the information given by Ezeife is misleading. They have the building but we have the oil. We are waiting for them to come. He should explain what he did with the money he said he appropriated for the oil. It is our oil”, Ahmadu said.