Local Content War in Niger Delta, Group Mobilises Women

Local Content War in Niger Delta, Group Mobilises Women

The relative peace in the Niger Delta, Nigeria's main oil and gas basin, will soon be shattered following renewed unease over how oil majors are allegedly treating the local content policy of the Federal Government. The amnesty programme of government being executed by Mr. Kingsley Kuku, has brought peace in the region and increased oil production of around two million barrels a day.

An aggrieved group is currently mobilising women for a renewed war in the volatile oil region. They are aiming at around 500,000 women. So far, they have gotten some 200,000. The aim of the current war plan is to cripple the operations of oil majors in the region due to their alleged subversion of the Local Content Act.

The arrowhead of the current battle is the Niger Delta Indigenous Movement for Radical Change (NDIMRC). Their struggle will take the form massive protest against the major oil companies, particularly the Anglo-Dutch Oil and gas giant, Shell

The group told AkanimoReports on Wednesday that they are calling out women from Niger Delta communities to disrupt the activities of Shell, Saipem, Daewoo and O.P.I., imploring President Goodluck Jonathan, the Petroleum Minister, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke and Executive Secretary/C.E.O. of Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Engr. Ernest Nwapa, should call Shell, particularly from their home office to Nigeria to educate them on the Local Content Policy signed into Law by the President April 22, 2010.

Their plan has been endorsed by their President, Nelly Emma, John Sailor and Mukoro Stanley claimed that Shell and the NNPC were heading for a major collision as a result of the altitude of Shell to local contractors.

The group revealed that; “Shell and NNPC are set for a head-on over the Local Content Policy because if NNPC recommend qualified contractors to Shell, Shell is always rejecting such recommendation from NNPC, but after series of meetings, Shell will now reluctantly accept our local contractors in their technical tender and if our brothers that have built up capacity for the industry submit technical tender with Saipem, Daewoo and O.P.I. Shell engineers as directed by the Managing Director of Shell, Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu, will come out with flimsy excuses to fail those local contractors recommended by NNPC; the Shell Managing Director and his engineers are always looking for one reason or the other to knock out our people in favour of Saipem, Daewoo and O.P.I.”

According to them, ''for this reason, the President, the Minister of Petroleum and the C.E.O. of Local Content Board should call Shell, particularly from their home office to Nigeria to educate them on the Local Content Policy and this brief should also be extended to other oil companies.”

“Shell is feeling that they are the oil giant company in Nigeria and for that they can talk to any President not to implement any Act that will not favour them, but this group wants to make it clear to them that they cannot have their way this time around in this our new Nigeria where President Jonathan is in-charge,” they stated.

While urging the Federal Government to sanction Shell for allegedly not carrying local contractors along, the group made it clear that; “If Shell Managing Director that is a Nigerian is violating the Local Content Act because of his selfish interest, we want to let him know that we are set to frustrate those companies that he is using to cheat our people. We are going to mobilize Niger Delta women to the work sites of Saipem, Daewoo and O.P.I. to cripple their operations wherever they are working in the region. The Shell Managing Director cannot manipulate the resources of our region.”

The group implored Shell President in the Hague to look into the activities of his Managing Director in Nigeria in order not to lose his business in the oil-rich Niger Delta region, just as it urged on NUPENG to call an emergency meeting to address their members in top management positions in Shell and other oil majors to embrace the Local Content Policy aimed at helping Nigerians in employment and investment.”

ENDS

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