Mazino, you are welcome. What our eyes have read ehn,

I insist that shell or any company for that matter is 'not' the Niger Delta's problem.
Nigerians are the problem. Shell and others have only keyed into the situation to inflict maximum damage and reap maximum profit.
History (and God, I dare say) will place all the actors/supporters, in this deprivation tragedy, where they belong.

@demmy:
The gas masterplan that has just be completed is in the books, go and read about it.
Now citing of gas facilities is to be done so as to reflect 'national character' because of the obvious benefits. When it was being flared, it is only the Niger Delta that bore the brunt.
If that is not tribalism/regionalism etc, then nothing else it. Have you not heard of OK LNG?

I'm afraid you need to know more about Nigeria Oil industry and the day-to day happenings and intrigues before you comment on things like this.

Posted by: slimnike
Why do they want alarms to be released?

Because Alarms is using the money he stole from Bayelsa to arm and pay them.

The problem has to do with the failure of the central government to allow states control their resources .

If states Government control their resources,the norths will just suffer.Because they have no better resource they can lay back on.

The gas masterplan that has just be completed is in the books, go and read about it.
Now citing of gas facilities is to be done so as to reflect 'national character' because of the obvious benefits. When it was being flared, it is only the Niger Delta that bore the brunt.
If that is not tribalism/regionalism etc, then nothing else it. Have you not heard of OK LNG?

@owo
I don't think you need national character to lay gas facilities throughout the federation or else how would other parts of the country peruse LNG in future. Unless there is something I'm missing here of course so do point an appropriate books' title.

I'm afraid you need to know more about Nigeria Oil industry and the day-to day happenings and intrigues before you comment on things like this.

I agree I don't. I do know however that the reason the Northern oligarch has held on to power (until now) for so long and eventually destroyed the true federalism we started out with at independent was with tacit agreement of the south-south voters. Tell me when did the south-south (until last election) voted along with the rest of the southerners to dislodge this destructive oligarch? At independence all the regions got back all the revenue derived from their regions. At that time Eastern region was actually posting better economic returns than the rest of the regions due to oil, returns it eventually squandered on futile secessionist adventure. In 1974-75 after the federal government had reduced the derivation to 45% Rivers and Mid-west states were allocated 241 million naira (even though they both had a combined population of 4.1 million) compared with 104 million naira to the four remaining regions (with combined population of 30.2 million), this progressive reduction continued until the second republic of Shagari (who was over-whelmingly voted for by the minorities in Niger Delta) when it was ultimately taken away. The south-south's fear of domination from the major ethnics in the south made them aligned themselves politically with the conservative retrogressive North and the present is the result of that choice.

The northerners are not contributing any thing to this country and they are the once ruling US.

demmy:

@owo
I don't think you need national character to lay gas facilities throughout the federation or else how would other parts of the country peruse LNG in future. Unless there is something I'm missing here of course so do point an appropriate books' title.

I agree I don't. I do know however that the reason the Northern oligarch has held on to power (until now) for so long and eventually destroyed the true federalism we started out with at independent was with tacit agreement of the south-south voters. Tell me when did the south-south (until last election) voted along with the rest of the southerners to dislodge this destructive oligarch? At independence all the regions got back all the revenue derived from their regions. At that time Eastern region was actually posting better economic returns than the rest of the regions due to oil, returns it eventually squandered on futile secessionist adventure. In 1974-75 after the federal government had reduced the derivation to 45% Rivers and Mid-west states were allocated 241 million naira (even though they both had a combined population of 4.1 million) compared with 104 million naira to the four remaining regions (with combined population of 30.2 million), this progressive reduction continued until the second republic of Shagari (who was over-whelmingly voted for by the minorities in Niger Delta) when it was ultimately taken away. The south-south's fear of domination from the major ethnics in the south made them aligned themselves politically with the conservative retrogressive North and the present is the result of that choice.

C'mon demmy, we both know that the votes of the minorty are never really counted. It's always drowned by those of other regions in the country

slimnike:

If states Government control their resources,the norths will just suffer.Because they have no better resource they can lay back on.

The only reason why the north will suffer in such a scenario will be a lack of foresight and good leadership. The tourist potential of the north is an infinite resource that can transform the whole region and provide economic development. But it seems everyone is blinded by oil money as if it will last forever.

Excerpt from Shagari's interview in Vanguard that shed light on Niger Delta crisis.

Q - One other contentious issue concerns revenue allocation, especially on the issue of derivation. Incidentally, it was during your administration that another 20 percent was shaved off the derivation. Now we have a major crisis in the Niger Delta; how can we share our resources so that there can be equity and justice, and everybody is satisfied?

Well, it is not easy. My own point of view is that what caused the problem is oil money. Without oil, we would have gone a long way as far as running the government is concerned, and particularly in the case of revenue allocation. It was a military government, not my own, that reduced the shares of the states, particularly, the oil-producing states, in the belief that the offshore oil should belong to the federation. In some way, they were right. But that caused a lot of complaints. Secondly, even if the Federal government did not take that which accrues from the offshore, the nature of the oil-producing area, that is the Delta, is a very difficult situation. With all the money in the world, development there is very, very difficult, because of the nature of the environment there. And you can spend the whole money accruing from oil without bringing the Delta people to the position of, say Lagos state or Oyo state, because of the geographical and environmental situation.

And without people really trying to play politics in the case of oil, the share (of oil revenue), which was given to the people in the Delta before was not enough. Still, it has been reviewed from time to time, and the people have received a bit more, each time. I think, that is much better progress than trying to cause trouble in order to starve non oil-producing states. It is always my belief that you can do things in a civilised way, and achieve what you want.

All we can do is to tell the people of the Niger Delta to be a little more patient. And with each increase they get, the more progress they make. But they should also remember that the mineral wealth is a federal matter. Although every state has its own share, the federal government is in control. So this is the problem, and it will continue like this until people really begin to think, not just of the small area they inhabit, but of the entire country. The interest of the country is paramount to everybody else's. But it is difficult for our people to realise that. Even so, on the sharing of oil revenue -- despite all the increases they have been getting of recent -- there is hardly any development going on there! You want to see what they have achieved with what has already been given to them. But you can't see much when you go there. That is the problem!

Q - The people of that area believe, especially from what happened at the National Political Reforms Conference, that the North has not shown sufficient sympathy to their cause, given that that area usually supported the NPN and the North.

Yes I agree! That is the impression that they got. But unfortunately, in my opinion, it was due to the way they approached the whole issue. Both sides were wrong, in my opinion. Each side tried to be very selfish, and not accommodate the other. And it does not augur well for our country, at all. It is a matter of give and take, and of tolerance. That is why I have taken the initiative after this quarrel between the South-South and the North, to bring them back together.

No metter what,the problem still persist.

demmy:

Excerpt from Shagari's interview in Vanguard that shed light on Niger Delta crisis.

Q - One other contentious issue concerns revenue allocation, especially on the issue of derivation. Incidentally, it was during your administration that another 20 percent was shaved off the derivation. Now we have a major crisis in the Niger Delta; how can we share our resources so that there can be equity and justice, and everybody is satisfied?

Well, it is not easy. My own point of view is that what caused the problem is oil money. Without oil, we would have gone a long way as far as running the government is concerned, and particularly in the case of revenue allocation. It was a military government, not my own, that reduced the shares of the states, particularly, the oil-producing states, in the belief that the offshore oil should belong to the federation. In some way, they were right. But that caused a lot of complaints. Secondly, even if the Federal government did not take that which accrues from the offshore, the nature of the oil-producing area, that is the Delta, is a very difficult situation. With all the money in the world, development there is very, very difficult, because of the nature of the environment there. And you can spend the whole money accruing from oil without bringing the Delta people to the position of, say Lagos state or Oyo state, because of the geographical and environmental situation.

And without people really trying to play politics in the case of oil, the share (of oil revenue), which was given to the people in the Delta before was not enough. Still, it has been reviewed from time to time, and the people have received a bit more, each time. I think, that is much better progress than trying to cause trouble in order to starve non oil-producing states. It is always my belief that you can do things in a civilised way, and achieve what you want.

All we can do is to tell the people of the Niger Delta to be a little more patient. And with each increase they get, the more progress they make. But they should also remember that the mineral wealth is a federal matter. Although every state has its own share, the federal government is in control. So this is the problem, and it will continue like this until people really begin to think, not just of the small area they inhabit, but of the entire country. The interest of the country is paramount to everybody else's. But it is difficult for our people to realise that. Even so, on the sharing of oil revenue -- despite all the increases they have been getting of recent -- there is hardly any development going on there! You want to see what they have achieved with what has already been given to them. But you can't see much when you go there. That is the problem!

Q - The people of that area believe, especially from what happened at the National Political Reforms Conference, that the North has not shown sufficient sympathy to their cause, given that that area usually supported the NPN and the North.

Yes I agree! That is the impression that they got. But unfortunately, in my opinion, it was due to the way they approached the whole issue. Both sides were wrong, in my opinion. Each side tried to be very selfish, and not accommodate the other. And it does not augur well for our country, at all. It is a matter of give and take, and of tolerance. That is why I have taken the initiative after this quarrel between the South-South and the North, to bring them back together.

And you think someone like Ono will swallow all these craps from Shagari? Think again demmy, think very well o, before you get misled by some old and outdated politician like Shagari.

Long thoughts without ideas.

@ono

I'm not the one to be misled by Shagari. My reference to the interview was to show one more time that IT WAS DURING THE SHAGARI ADMINISTRATION WHICH THE SOUTH-SOUTH VOTED FOR ENMASSE THAT THE DERIVATION OF OVER 20% IT ENJOYED BEFORE THEN WAS TOTALLY REMOVED.

And despite this even today South-South are still aligned with the North politically.

The south -south is 'still aligned' (according to you) with the 'north' because, only God knows what would happen if the alliance was with the other 'possible' group.

If its like this while unaligned, then blood would have been flowing if there was any form of alignment.

@owo

Sure God knows what would have happened had the progressive force been allowed to come to power in Nigeria the better to aligned with religio-conservative oligarchs who retarded the progress at worst and stagnated it at best. Choices do have repercussions you know. By the way you're still to show how other people (the yoruba) are to blame.

the problem is that dem wan bobo us

@demmy

Are 'yoruba's ' the 'other' people??, Hmmmmm. Never 'knew' that.

If so, then only one of their kind has had the unique priviledge of leading this contraption on two different ocassions for a total of about 11 years (out of 46 years of independence), that is about 25% of the post-independence period.

It suffices to say that at least 25% of the country's shame, victories, fears, management or mismanagement,successes, failures, abuse of power, prowess, oppresion, liberation, illiteracy or literacy, growth or stuntedness, backwardness, tribalistic tendencies, corruption, uprightness, brain drain, orderliness or disorderliness, poor infrastructure, industrialisation or the lack of it, mass poverty (or mass wealth) etc etc etc, can be traced to one man and he is Yoruba (fortunately or unfortunately).

It also suffices to say that - 25% of the troubles and solutions of the Delta (adn its problems) can be directly traced to him (abi them).

Brother, think thrice before you play the ethnic superiority card, It's an ill-wind, it always precedes a fall, a great fall at that (you can ask those that tried it).

what is this ethnic superiority card ki ni ko? is that another type of government magic?

Niger Delta Governor Seeks Equity Share in Oil Blocks
AFX News Limited
Monday, April 10, 2006


Governor Victor Attah of Nigeria's oil-rich southern state of Akwa Ibom has proposed equity participation by local communities in the country's lucrative oil blocks as a recipe for peace in the volatile Niger Delta region.

Armed militants have this year killed at least 24 members of the security forces, kidnapped and released 13 foreign oil workers, and blown up several pipelines, forcing firms to cut Nigeria's 2.6 million-barrel per day exports by more than one-fifth.

The state-run Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) holds 60 percent equity participation in the oil sector while the oil majors like Shell, ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco, Agip, and Total take 40 percent.

"It will make greater understanding of the whole oil thing if for instance today the NNPC agrees that it does not have to continue to maintain 60-40 percent relationship between it and the oil majors," Attah told a group of foreign journalists in the state capital.

"I ask what will be wrong in a 40-20-40 situation where the NNPC will hold 40, the states 20, and the oil majors 40. What will be wrong in that?" he said.

"There will be even more eyes overseeing this thing (oil). There will be greater local involvement. People will now begin to feel that this resources belong to us and we must protect it," he said.

"They must protect what belongs to them and so on. I think even the vandalization and hostage-takings will cease. Not just because more people will be employed and involved but they will know it is their own.

"Right now, they don't see this thing belonging to them and so they indulge in destruction, violence, and attacks," he added.

Attah said current agitation for an increase in the percentage of revenue for the oil states was not enough to douse the violence in the region.

"My conviction is clear that, the involvement aspect (of stakeholders) is very critical to peace," he said.

Source:http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=31157

This is Hon Arch. Victor Attah's solution to the Niger Delta Crisis. I agree with him whole heartedly.

Governor Attah's suggestion is not good because many of the oil producing states have failed to adequately show what they have done with the federal revenue. Any formula should be on a community by community basis. Its not every Ijaw village that produces oil by the way. This is another type of government magic.

You are right.

@otokx
Other states (non-oil producing) have not shown what they have done with the Delta's money that is being given to them.

I insist that the argument that there is nothing to show for the money given to Oil producing states is diversionary, begging the question and at best an attempt at blackmail.
It is used to cover up the absence of any sane argument to butress the continued deprivation of the Niger Delta of its rights.

Should a man's employer refuse to pay him his salary (that he has earned) because he gets drunk with the money?

owo: Should a man's employer refuse to pay him his salary (that he has earned) because he gets drunk with the money?

Yes if he ask for a raise I think there is a moral argument to refuse him. The reason Niger delta states are recieving more money than other states is so the money can be used for development but when this are instead diverted to looters' bank accounts then Nigerians has the right to ask them to be accountable before asking for more.

I challenge you Chief demmy to bring out what Oyo, Osun, and Ekiti states have done with the money obtained from pauperising the inhabitants of the Delta.


If and when you do, I will refer you to only one state in the Delta that all of them put together cannot compare - Cross River.

When you finish adding what Ogun and Lagos States have done, then I will compare it with Akwa Ibom alone.


The Delta is not seeking your pity, favour , concern or benevolence. It is demanding for its due right and that has nothing to do with how it runs its internal affairs.

@demmy; I dare to ask you to name the looters and the amounts linked to them.

When you finish just compare the figures with what Tafa Balogun alone stashed away (and got six 'crazy' months in the name of a prison sentence).
Add that to what the late Afolabi presided over in the National Identity card scam.
We all know the real rogues.

Remove the wool from your eyes and come down from your high hill, it seems you are the only person that does not know the looters and plunderers of this system.

You guys seems to have a myopic view of what Attah's talking about here. This is a clear case of taking a look at the total picture and coming up with an amicable solution that will definitely gladden the hearts of the majority of the Delta people and at thesame time make other non-oil producing states have a sense of belonging in the country. And we hope that they would in turn, in the future, be willing to share the proceeds from their own resources the way we have allowed them in on our own.

Reading through his lines of thought, he definitely wants the involvement of the stakeholders in the profits and costs that the oil business has to offer. A situation whereby a bunch of fat, rotund and ugly lot siting in a palatial building at Abuja decides how the resources of a place should be managed is not a healthy one. When the people who owns the resources of a place are allowed (the word ''allow'' is indeed a misnomer, no one dare dictates to anyone what he should do with his God-given wealth - except in a master-slave settings) to participate in how their resources is exploited breeds a sense of belonging. When you deny them this chance, you deny them their very sense of existence.

So, Attah's suggestion should be acceptable to all at this time.

owo:

@demmy; I dare to ask you to name the looters and the amounts linked to them.

When you finish just compare the figures with what Tafa Balogun alone stashed away (and got six 'crazy' months in the name of a prison sentence).
Add that to what the late Afolabi presided over in the National Identity card scam.
We all know the real rogues.

Remove the wool from your eyes and come down from your high hill, it seems you are the only person that does not know the looters and plunderers of this system.

Everything is tribal to you even looters are of a particular tribe. I think the wool is on your eyes.

My dear, if everything is not tribal in your eyes then, stop poke-nosing into our internal affairs and drop that tribal phrase ", the money is being diverted into looter's accounts therefore they should not ask for more", even if its their due.

We all know the real looters and the day(s) of reckoning is(are) nearer than you can imagine.

We have a right to do what we want with what is ours and you have no portion nor inheritance in it.

We have a right to do what we want with what is ours and you have no portion nor inheritance in it.

Who is this WE you're refering to? You must be part of the looters, thieves and kidnappers like MEND using the unfortunate situation in Niger delta to extort for money because I can't imagine one poor common person from Niger delta with an ignoble opinion like that otherwise if not you need to wake up and see who your real problems are. MEND and their likes are not acting in the interest of ordinary people of Niger Delta. They are thieves. As for your coming days of reckoning nothing would give me more joy than to see looters accountable for their lootings.

Read the below article from Africa Confidential for an inside scoop.

Some of the militant leaders linked to the attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta earn tens of thousands of dollars from contracts with the oil majors. The FNDIC leaders Kingsley Otuaro and Messio German run contracting companies working with the oil majors. In Okerenkoko, Messio’s Integrate Production System Surveillance (IPSS) signed a second annual contract with Shell in November to provide security for the company’s huge Jones Creek flow station, where Okerenkoko is one of five ‘host communities’. Messio says the first contract was worth 24 million naira (US$164,000). The second, running from 1 November to 31 October, was for an initial N18 mn. ($123,000), including ‘incident-free bonuses’ of N3.6 mn. ($24,700) a quarter.
IPSS is not officially registered and its contracts look like disguised protection payments. ‘I sincerely believe MEND will not blow up any pipeline [in Okerenkoko] because the security boys would not allow it’, says Messio. He adds that pipeline vandalisation used to be common until a memorandum from him and Otuaro prompted Shell to hire IPSS.
Messio says Shell has since hired local contracting firms all over Delta state. Similar arrangements in Bayelsa are a source of friction between rival Ijaw communities. Shell admits it faces ‘pressure for cash payments for non-legitimate reasons’, but ruled in 2003 that it would no longer pay communities except for legitimate business reasons. Chevron’s similar clean-up last year involved a Global Memorandum of Understanding, designed to end practices such as the hiring of ‘ghost workers’ to pacify local youths. It also said it was ending the designation of ‘host communities’ for its flow stations (oil rigs have ‘impacted communities’) but the message does not seem to have reached the creeks.
An outfit called The Host Communities of Nigeria wants a constitutional amendment to ensure that 13 per cent of government oil revenues go directly to them, rather than to the state governments which, they say, steal most of the money. Leaders in this move are FNDIC’s Messio and the Gbaramatu chiefs.
Shell has been targeted by MEND in the latest violence but not Chevron, the opposite of what happened in 2003. Then, Chevron facilities were attacked in both Ijaw and Itsekiri areas. Ijaws felt that Itsekiris were getting a disproportionate number of oil jobs (Ijaws call that ‘differentials’).
Otuaro denies any link with MEND and says that Shell is targetted because it is less responsive to ‘opinion leaders’ such as himself, especially in paying for trips to the creeks to calm down angry youths or give jobs to local people. complains that Shell refused work to one of his contracting companies, Bruz-Otus, when drilling new wells around Jones Creek last year. Shadro Services Limited, which is owned by Otuaro and his brother Shadrack Otuaro, has lucrative contracts with Shell at Jones Creek and the Egwa oilfield. This pattern of business and militancy is repeated across the region.

welldone demmy; i wonder why oil companies should give contracts to unregistered companies in nigeria. when you see nigerians shouting don't bother too much because majority of them are fighting for their immediate stomach alone and can't leave a legacy to their unborn generations.

@Demmy,

It's unfortunate that you can't seem to come to terms with this ''big picture'' view.

All these Okerenkoko, Jones Creeks and other deals stated in the news above yields little or nothing compared to the bulk of the money that goes to Abuja. You don't seem to understand Owo stance here. Billions of dollars and Naira goes from the Niger Delta Heartland to feed pests,fat, rotund, ugly and loud mouthed idiots at the corridors of power in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Kaduna and other non oil producing areas.

All those peanuts Otuaro and brothers realise from sweeping flowstations and packing waste is just nothing compared to what thieves at the loading Terminals report to their Ogas at Abuja. You'd better come to terms with reality, my friend and stop being myopic.

The 13 percent derivation to oil producing states + Otuaro and brothers deals with oil majors + Other such deals + bunkering + community MOUs kick backs + Ghost workers payment in the Delta + Others not known in the delta is less than < (insignificant, actually)  Federal Govt take + Oil majors take in the oil deals in the Delta.

I hope that knocks out your outbursts.