Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has called out oil companies over the unfair treatment meted out to host communities in Bayelsa State and other Niger Delta communities.
The governor, who spoke when he received the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor, in his office at Government House, Yenagoa, said the insecurity in some oil communities was due to the unjust treatment they received.
A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, said the negligence of oil companies on host communities was alarming, noting that the November 2021 oil and gas spillage in Nembe Local Government Area of the state is an example of unfair treatment.
According to Dir, “A case in point was the AITEO oil spill. That facility was said to be unproductive, was not decommissioned and it spewed oil for over a month, which was the first of its kind in the history of oil exploration in this country.
“At the end of the day, a potential source of conflict was during the joint inspection visit, which has caused a rift between the state government, AITEO and, to an extent, the supervisors from the oil and gas sector.
“However, because of our disposition, we have been able to calm down our communities. Now it is the state government with the local government on one side, and of course, AITEO and the supervising oil and gas bodies on the other side, which I feel should not be if we do what is right, and if there is equity and fairness.
“For the fact that the environment has been affected as well as the source of livelihood of the people, it is very human for the oil companies to have immediately responded by way of compensation. Unfortunately, what we have seen is that there is some collaboration and collusion with AITEO and the regulatory agencies and we were forced to take legal action against AITEO.”
Diri stressed that his administration was open to collaborating, synergising and strengthening the existing relationship between the state and the security agencies.
On his part, Gen Irabor said he is in Bayelsa to solidify the partnership between the state and the military because they recognise the crucial role of the state government in accommodating and strengthening the operations of the country’s armed forces.
He added that the visit was also to collaborate with the state, particularly in combating oil theft, kidnapping and the destruction of oil facilities across the state.
The Defence Chief also noted that any form of destruction of the nation’s oil investment is a direct attack on the future of the country’s oil wealth and thanked Governor Diri for his unrelenting support to the military and other security agencies.
