The Bayelsa government on Wednesday indicated willingness to withdraw pending litigation against the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) over unpaid revenue running into billions of naira.
It would
be recalled that the Bayelsa government had dragged SPDC to court over failure
of the oil firm to pay ‘development levies’ for land acquired for the
construction of SPDC’s Gbarain-Ubie gas facility in Yenagoa, Bayelsa capital.
The
immediate past administration led by Senator Seriake Dickson had instituted
various legal actions against some International Oil Companies for evasion of
taxes due the state.
The
Bayelsa government had in March suspended all agreements signed between oil
firms and host communities in Bayelsa and alleged that SPDC was fuelling
communal clashes resulting to violence in Ekeremor Local Government Area of
Bayelsa.
Gov Douye
Diri extended the olive branch when the Shell Country Chair and SPDC Managing
Director, Mr. Osagie Okunbor, led a management delegation on a courtesy visit
to Government House, Yenagoa.
Speaking
on the legal dispute over outstanding revenues owed the state by the company,
Diri said an amicable resolution was possible in the spirit of the renewed
relationship between both parties.
The governor also spoke about his administration's decision to supervise the
signing and be a part of Global Memorandum of Understanding (GMoU) between host
communities and companies operating in the state.
He said this was occasioned by cases of breaches of such agreements, which
result in conflicts.
The policy, according to the governor, would be supervised by the Ministry of
Justice in order to protect the interest of such communities and, by extension,
the companies.
“We made that policy statement to say that all GMoUs to be signed between the
communities and any company, including the oil companies, has to be supervised
by the Ministry of Justice.
“This was
because we want to at all times protect the interest of our communities and
even the companies. Also, at all times, the state government would be aware of
the issues.
“We have seen situations where GMoU is signed but only very few people, who
claim to be community leaders, are aware of it. And that becomes a veritable
tools for community conflicts,” Diri said.
According to the governor, the presence of Shell in Bayelsa was of mutual
benefit to both parties.
The governor emphasised that the long-standing relationship between the state
and Shell, following the discovery of oil in commercial quantity at Otuabagi
community in Ogbia Local Government Area, was proof that they were both
inseparable in oil and gas business.
While assuring the company of a conducive working environment, Diri noted that
the stereotype of insecurity in the Niger Delta as a ploy to deprive the goose
that lays the golden egg was no longer tenable.
The governor solicited the partnership of Shell on major infrastructure
projects like the proposed Nembe-Brass road as well as the ongoing
Yenagoa-Oporoma and Sagbama-Ekeremorroad projects.
He thanked the company for its support on the Ogbia-Nembe road.
Speaking at the event, Okunbor, noted the key steps taken by Diri to promote
peace in the state and commended the governor’s leadership quality.
Okunbor described Bayelsa as the company’s most important host state, adding
that the leadership of Shell Comoanies in Nigeria is impressed with the
governor's handling of affairs of the state and his support for their operations.
He said that Bayelsa was host to some of the company's most strategic assets
that keeps it going.
Okunbor pledged to sustain the relationship between the company and the state
through investment in key development projects in the state.
No comments:
Post a Comment