A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and petroleum expert, Olooye Adegboyega Adegoke has tasked the National Assembly to harmonise all the grey areas in the recently passed Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) for the good of Nigeria and its people.
Olooye Adegoke stated this while speaking with journalists, Saturday, after receiving an award of excellence from the Inner Wheel Club District 913-Nigeria, during the investiture of IWM Ojoele-Stools Sherifat Bolatito as the 35th District chairman.
The APC chieftain and a senatorial hopeful emphasised that the harmonisation became necessary to avoid any litigation or disagreement that may arise from the passing of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law.
According to Olooye Adegoke who is the Ajia Balogun of Ibadanland, there is the need for the National Assembly and the Executive to harmonise all the grey areas in the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) before it eventually becomes law.
“There is the need for the House of Representatives and the Senate to meet to harmonise some grey areas. House of Representatives recommended 5% while Senate recommended 3% allocation for the host communities”, he said..
Olooye Adegoke added, “another grey area is the recommendation of 30% profit of the NNPC to be spent on frontier basins, which are mainly in the Northern part of the country. This implies that 30% of the NNPC funds will be channelled into looking for oil and gas in those areas.”
The petroleum expert noted that part of the grey areas that need to be resolved before the PIB becomes law include 5% recommendation by the House of Representatives, 3% recommendation by the Senate to the host communities as well as the 30% of the NNPC profit earmarked to be spent on frontier basin for oil & gas exploration.
Expressing happiness over the passing of the bill, the APC Senatorial hopeful said, “First of all, it is a welcome development because we have been on it for several years, 17 years for that matter, but now we have been able to do something”.
“I want to add that non-passing of the PIB has led to reduction in investment in the Oil & Gas sector in Nigeria. It is same Oil and Gas globally, so if one country is not serious, you will take your money to other countries and that’s what has been happening in Nigeria. Now it is one step forward but there are lots of grey areas in the bill to be addressed.”
Speaking further, the APC chieftain said, “To me, it looks somehow in this era of borrowing from China, and that the little NNPC is making 30% of it they will be spending on Oil and Gas exploration, we are not sure of, even if we get oil from those basins, it cannot be in commercial quantity.”
“This money is supposed to be spent on infrastructure, supporting the Niger Delta where the oil is coming from. But all in all we need political solutions to all these grey areas”.
