Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal on Wednesday warned members of the newly inaugurated Adhoc Committee on Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) chaired by Isiaka Bawa to ensure absolute circumspection, diligence, transparency and patriotism in the performance of their duties, considering the high level of interest and expectations on the bill from various interest groups both within and outside the country.
“I should also caution that in the demanding nature of the task before you and high interest and expectations lies the glittering but slippery line of integrity test,” Tambuwal said.
“When you encounter it, do not take a second look; do not slow down; do not stop but rather flee because it is outside the scope of your mandate. May the Almighty God grant you the wisdom and strength to come out of this assignment with greater honour and integrity than you now possess.”
The soft-spoken speaker, who urged the committee to make sure its work on the bill is thorough and enduring, noted that the assignment is critical, sensitive and demanding.
Isiaka Bawa, the chairman of the committee, observed that the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) is capable of attracting and retaining a sizeable quantum of foreign direct investment into the sector and as well promote investments by Nigerians.
He affirmed that the committee has the onerous responsibility of providing a legal framework that will guide and guard the operations of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry, adding that the enactment of a statute will not only ensure optimal utilization of this important national resource but is also capable of attracting and retaining a sizeable quantum of local and foreign direct investment in to the sector.
“Permit me, therefore, to seize this opportunity, on behalf of the members of this committee, to express our most profound gratitude to the speaker, Rt. Honourable Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (CFR) and our entire colleagues in the House of Representatives for considering us worthy of this important national assignment,” Bawa said in response.
“We are under no illusion as to the enormity of the task ahead of us and therefore fully understand that it will require our maximum dedication, commitment, diligence and, above all, unflinching patriotism to accomplish. We therefore wish to assure Your Excellency and the entire House that we will give our very best, individually and collectively, to justify the confidence reposed in us. We shall act only in the national interest and not promote narrow, sectional or primordial interests.”
Continuing, he said, “Since the setting up of the committee, a lot of background work has taken place, culminating in today’s inauguration. We have carefully drawn up a comprehensive Work Plan for the committee, which comprises Members’ Retreat scheduled to take place from 18th to 20th of this month in Lagos. This will be followed by Public Hearings in the six geopolitical zones with the grand finale in Abuja on dates to be announced in due course.
“The essence of the Zonal Public hearings is to bring the process to the doorsteps of the people at the grass roots, especially the oil producing communities, whose views will be a critical factor in packaging the kind of Petroleum Industry Law that will address not only elitist concerns but also the other crucial issues concerning the environment as well as human development.
“The grand Finale in Abuja will provide other stakeholders the opportunity to present their own perspectives on the bill. Other citizens and stakeholders not able to attend the public hearings can articulate their positions via memoranda to the committee.
He promised that the committee’s modus operandi would be transparent, as all views would be collated and accorded equal value and the final report and recommendations would reflect the aggregate views of Nigerians, with due regards to global best practice.
“The House of Representatives has no fixed or hidden agenda on the Petroleum Industry Bill and accordingly this committee will be so guided in this assignment. In the final analysis, we would have struck a delicate but necessary balance between overriding national interests on the one hand and the need to make our oil industry attractive to foreign investments on the other,” he added.
“The need for this balance has become even more imperative since Nigeria and a few countries in Africa no longer have the monopoly they hitherto enjoyed in oil export. The recent discoveries of oil in a number of sub-Saharan countries, especially our next-door neighbours such as Niger Republic, Chad and Ghana, have thrown up new challenges and introduced new dynamics for Nigeria in the global oil industry. We must therefore seek to do things differently not only to retain our traditional trading partners but also to attract more investors into the industry.”
He therefore urged all stakeholders in the Industry to accord his committee their maximum cooperation to enable it respond with the best possible Legal Regime that will facilitate the far-reaching reforms needed to rid the sector of the leakages and sabotage (such as bunkering and pipeline vandalism) that have become an embarrassment to the nation.
