Ndokwa community threatens shut down of oil field over ground rent

The Umusadege –Ogbe community of Ndokwa land, Delta state has called on the Presidency to urge the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) and all defaulting oil and gas companies to immediately pay compensations and penalties for non-renewal of MoU and ground rent to the host communities.

“A petition sent to the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Niger Delta Affairs and signed by leader of the community, Chief Augustine Maduagwu Opia, the people said, “The difficult and provoking situation of NAOC has made our agitation to be tense and restive.”

“The people in the community are seriously threatening total shut down of their operations, being reason for this last effort to seek your urgent response to avert avoidable public disturbances.”

They people called on the presidency to save them from the high-handedness of NAOC by urging the company to promptly engage with the community to develop, produce and sign a mutually beneficially memorandum of agreement and understanding between the two parties.

According to the petition, the people also want NAOC to pay without delay, the long accrued compensatory benefits, including projects funds and unpaid 42-year land rents to Umusadege-Ogbe community as it host community to the tune of $211,483,713.68  covering land rent   and remunerations due to Umusadege –Ogbe in the 42 years of NAOC operations in the land, which has not been paid yet.

 “The President may wish to convene a subpoena or a cause a roundtable meeting between both parties (Umusadge-ogbe and NAOC) to be superintended by government as a way to having a lasting solution to the problem,” the community said, adding that the roundtable should be held early enough to avert any ugly consequence.

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