News

CSO Wants Interogation Of IOCs’ Divestment In Onshore

Published

2 years ago

May 27, 2022

Editor

Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) has called on the government of Nigeria to urgently stop the incentivisation of oil companies to divesting the onshore sector to deep offshore.

ERA/FoEN said if at all the government wants to allow divestment in the oil sector, there should a guaranteed process of reclaiming the environment and restoring it to how it was before the divesting entities began operations.

The Executive Director of ERA/FoEN, Chima Willaims, Esq., made the call in Benin on Friday at an event tagged Civil Society Round-table on International Oil Companies (IOC) Divestment in the Niger Delta.

The Executive Director said the Round-table on divestment was a continuation of a process that ERA had commenced to interrogate the reason the IOCs “suddenly started a divestment process that is leading to sale of their (IOCs) entire onshore assets and going deep and investing in deep offshore.”(Sic)

While noting that the Round-table to interrogate the reason why the IOCs are going into divestment started in Bayelsa and later in Rivers State, Williams said interrogations by ERA have shown that the arguments put forth by the oil companies on reason why they are going into divestment have been proved to be false.

“Our interrogations have shown that the arguments that the oil companies are making on why they are divesting are false, and we challenge them to come out for a discussion on it,” he said.

Williams continues: “Nigeria will be the greatest loser if we allow these divesting multi-national companies to leave behind the mess they have created, which they are selling off to our brothers and sisters in the domestic operations who do not have the financial and technical strengths to engage and recover our environment. Allowing this to happen will mean double jeopardy and punishment for Nigerians.”

The Executive Director said if at all the IOCs must be allowed to go into divestment, ERA is concerned with a situation “whereby divestment is done with the real intention of divestment, and not a divestment of milking us and throwing us out as a waste product.”

Speaking on ‘the abuse of divestment by IOCs in Nigeria; divestment affects local communities,’ President, Host Communities Network of Nigeria, Prince Preye Pawuru warned that if divestment by IOCs is allowed the GDP of Nigeria will fall.

He added: “Our oil production will drop; the money coming to the oil sector will drop.

“The oil companies have done so much damage to our environment which they have not cleanup yet they want to go into divestment.”

On his part, former Edo lawmaker, Friday Ogierakhi, described divestment by the IOCs as use and dump, adding that after “the multi-national have perhaps taken the juice from the onshore, and now living the remnant for the people.”

While describing the Round-table as a proactive move, the former lawmaker said there was need to call the multi-national companies to account.

He added: “it is about accountability in the Oil mineral industry. If you must divest, there must be something in return for the people for all that you have taken away.” (sic)

News

Bauchi Commissioner Gifts 3 Students Cash For Prompt Resumption, Ability To Read

Published

5 hours ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

The Bauchi state Commissioner for Education, Dr Jamila Dahiru, on Thursday, gave a cash gift of N5,000 each to three Senior Secondary II students of Government Science Secondary School, Misau for their determination to succeed in Education.

Two of the students, Adamu Adamu, Mustapha and Haruna impressed the commissioner for their presence in school in the first day of resumption while Abdullahi Musa marvelled her for his reading ability and comprehension.

According to the commissioner, the gesture was to appreciate their determination to learn as well and motivate other students to emulate them.

While paying a courtesy visit to the Emir of Misau, Alh. Ahmed Sulaiman, the commissioner disclosed that the Bauchi State government was working with stakeholders from the Misau Emirate to fine-tune modalities of temporarily accommodating the students of Federal Science Technical College, Misau at its Science Secondary School Misau.

She said the college made the request in a letter to the ministry stating that the facility given to them could no longer accommodate their students population, hence the resolve to convene the stakeholders meeting to fine-tune ways of sharing the facility for the betterment of the state.

She disclosed that government science secondary school Misau, one of the best in the state in terms of befitting facilities has the capacity to accommodate up to five thousand students, but currently houses about three hundred students.

She appreciated the Emir for his continued support to programmes and policies of the government with more emphasis on the education sector.

Speaking on behalf of the Emir and other stakeholders, a retired Director with the Ministry, Muhammad Musa, expressed gratitude to the Commissioner for the honour and promised to assemble critical stakeholders from the emirate so as to arrive at an acceptable decision for the benefit of all and sundry.

News

NDIC Obtains Order To Wind Down 96 Microfinance, Mortgage Banks

Published

6 hours ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation has said that it has obtained Winding up Orders for 96 out of 183 microfinance and primary mortgage banks whose licenses were revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria in May 2023.

The Managing Director, NDIC, Bello Hassa, revealed this at a sensitisation seminar for Judges of the Federal High Court in Lagos on Thursday organised by the NDIC, to enlighten the judiciary on the intricacies of the banking industry.

Hassan said, “As at date, the Corporation had obtained Winding up Orders for 96 out of 183 Micro Finance and Primary Mortgage Banks whose licenses were revoked by the CBN in May 2023, in less than one Year of revocation.”

He added that the NDIC was committed to fulfilling its mandate of protecting depositors through bank supervision, failure resolution and liquidation so as to boost confidence in the financial system.

Speaking on the role that the judiciary plays in the fulfillment of the mandate, Hassan said, “We recognise the judiciary as one of our critical stakeholders. With this, when cases are brought before them, they can receive accelerated hearing and proclamation of Justice.”

Citing some of the achievements from previous editions of the seminar, Hassan said that instances where liquidation-related litigations experienced delays were reduced.

News

JUST IN: 36 Speakers Back State Police

Published

7 hours ago

May 16, 2024

Editor

Speakers of the 36 Houses of Assembly in Nigeria on Thursday expressed support for the National Assembly’s ongoing efforts to alter the 1999 constitution to create state policing in the country.

The Speakers made their resolution known at the end of their meeting in Abuja.

The Senate and House of Representatives are currently working to amend various constitutional provisions, including those regarding state police, financial autonomy for local government, fiscal federalism, and mayoral status for the FCT.

Details shortly…