The National President of Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas (HostCom), Dr Benjamin Tamaranebi, has said funding for HostComply, an application being set up by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), will be funded by the regulator.
Speaking during a press conference in Abuja at the weekend, following an earlier report, Tamaranebi said: “NUPRC is a regulator. They are the ones that set up the HostComply. They are the ones funding it. The funding is not coming from the 3 per cent.”
The media report had raised stakeholders’ concerns, which noted that the NUPRC might be overstepping its boundaries by taking out of the three per cent through their involvement in activities that would create extra financial burdens.
Tamaranebi said the HostComply remained a welcome development, adding that it will ensure transparency, accountability and create proper management of the funds.
Calling for a review of Section 257 of the PIA, which holds communities liable for breaches on oil company facilities or equipment; he noted that the portion was out of place.
He said since the communities were not being paid to secure the assets, the law remains unfair.
“That is an unfair law. The security should pay for it. The host communities do not know how it is securing the assets. But if you want the community to pay for it, then give the security job to the communities,” Tamaranebi said.
He referred to the media report as a “propaganda campaign to frustrate genuine efforts at refining operations in the industry.”
Recall that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) also explained how the new ‘HostComply platform’ would operate, insinuating that it was being blackmailed by those who want to maintain the status quo to the detriment of the country and host communities who suffer the effect of oil exploration.
In a statement at the weekend, NUPRC stated that the setting up of HostComply was in furtherance to the provision of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, Chapter 3, Section 235(1) which says: “The settlor shall incorporate Host Communities Development Trust for the benefit of the host communities for which the settlor is responsible”.
It added that Section 235(4) of the act states that: “The settlor shall for the purpose of setting up the trust, in consultation with the host communities, appoint and authorise a board of trustees, which shall apply to be registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) as a corporate body under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).”
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