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Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege has argued that the annual contribution of an amount equal to 2.5 per cent of actual operating expenditure by oil companies to the host community development trust fund proposed in the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) is not enough.
Senator Omo-Agege presented this argument on the floor of the Nigerian Senate as the lawmakers debated the PIB during Tuesday’s plenary, following which the bill passed second reading.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the PIB passed second reading and was referred to the joint committee on petroleum upstream, petroleum downstream and gas to report back within eight weeks.
Presenting his argument, Omo-Agege revealed that in the 8th Senate when the PIB was considered, the percentage contribution of oil companies to the host community development trust fund was pegged at 10 per cent.
He urged the Senate to go back to the 5 per cent of the operational expenses for the host community, stressing that asking that moving the contribution of oil companies from 2.5 per cent to 5 per cent is not inconsiderable.
“I will like to highlight the contribution of oil companies to the host community development trust. In the 8th Senate when we considered this bill, the per cent for the host community is 10 per cent but what I am seeing here is 2.5 per cent. This is inadequate. We can take this to a percentage that is acceptable to everybody.
“I am going to propose that at a very barest minimum, we should go back to the 5 per cent of the operational expenses for the host community. Asking that this should be moved from 2.5 per cent to 5 per cent is not inconsiderable,” Omo-Agege stated.
The Delta Central Senator also made a case on the issue of gas flaring in the Niger Delta, stressing that penalty for gas flaring is supposed to be used to ameliorate the conditions in Niger Delta communities.
“I will like to point out that we still have issues of gas flaring. According to this bill, penalty for gas flaring is supposed to be paid into the federation account. If there is going to be penalty for gas flaring, it is only reasonable that the penalty should be used to ameliorate conditions in the host communities. This should be looked into,” Omo-Agege stated.