South South Zonal Organising Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and a legal practitioner, Blessing Agbomhere, says the battle to ensure equity and fairness in the divestment of the assets of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited is going to be on until justice is served.
Recall that Shell, one of the international oil companies (IOCs), involved in oil exploration in Nigeria over the years has pulled out of production of crude at the onshore basins of the Niger Delta and divested their assets to Renaissance group, a company without any Niger Deltan in its board.
Meanwhile, Agbomhere, representing the interest of Niger Deltans, and on behalf of his clients is challenging the decision of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to award Shell’s assets to Renaissance group insisting that the move falls short of the combined provisions of sections 1, 2, 3, 12, 14, 15 and 16 of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act 2010 and Section 42 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
In an interview with newsmen in Abuja, Agbomhere reiterated that: “there is no guarantee of peace in the Niger Delta if the divestment to Renaissance group is allowed to stand, adding that indigenes of the region cannot continue to suffer the callous degradation of their environment through unregulated exploration activities in the region while a group of investors who are unconcerned about the plight of our people continue to cash in on the oil windfall.
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“If there must be divestment of these assets, it must be to the people of Niger Delta or companies substantially owned by Niger Deltans who will give priority to environmental remediation of the region, because only indigenes of the Niger-Delta can ensure that there is order and an environment free from pollution.
“We know that countries with non-renewable resource wealth face both an opportunity and a challenge. When these resources are put in the hands of reasonable people, they can create greater prosperity for current and future generations. When they are put in wrong hands and are poorly managed, they can cause economic instability, social conflict, and lasting environmental damage. This has been the case in Nigeria.
“When a child continues to suck the mother’s breast milk without replenishment, it can lead to death. So, the decision to hand Shell’s assets to Renaissance group is injustice and would not stand as we will continue the effort to ensure that the poorly thought out and concocted divestment process is redressed.
“We are urging all involved, including the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Minister of Petroleum and most importantly the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu to consider a reversal of the divestment as it would be a testament to the coordinated implementation of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the APC led administration which is commitment to the wellbeing of Nigerians in general and Niger Deltans in particular.
“Our request is simple. The divestment process that brought in Renaissance Group must be annulled. A new process that will involve the people of Niger Delta and companies owned by them must be considered for the divestment of these assets as specified in the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, and this is all we are asking the authorities to do”.
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