The Senator representing Kogi East at the National Assembly, Isaac Mohammed Alfa has urged the Federal Government to proclaim Kogi as one of the oil producing States.
Addressing National Assembly Press Corps at the end of his meeting with the Ibaji Oil and Gas on Monday, Senator Alfa said only when Kogi was recognised as Oil Producing State that the mutual suspicion and the tension in the oil area would stop.
He, however, called on the people of Ibaji community to remain law abiding while he pressurised the federal government through the instrumentality of legislative advocacy, to do the needful, in order for peace to return to the oil producing community.
“The essence of the meeting was to first and foremost impress on our people to remain law abiding while I continue to liaise with the Senate and the Federal Government to declare Kogi State ‘an Oil Producing State'”, he said.
Speaking further, Senator Alfa, who was sworn in a month ago, berated the Anambra State Government for laying claim to the Oil Community, adding that the N4bn claimed to have been invested in Ibaji Oil by Anambra was actually a fuss.
“The management team of the Oil exploration company that was involved in the activity of exploration in the area is from Anambra State, and this has led to the erroneous belief that the oil belongs to Anambra State.
“The facts emanating from our meeting as part of the causes of the crises is the claim that Anambra State says it has invested N4 billion into the exploration of Ibaji Oil.
“But the true position is that the investment is by Orient Petroleum, a private company which is not the same as Anambra State and this cannot therefore make Anambra the owner of the oil in Ibaji”, Senator Alfa explained.
DAILY POST recalls that the Ibaji Oil crisis has been on for a while and has also led to large scale destructions of lives and properties.
The Odeke and Aguleri communities of Kogi and Anambra States as well as the Igala speaking communities in Uzo-Uwani LGA of Enugu State had all laid exclusive claims to the ownership of the oil in the disputed area.
Commenti