Abuja—Chief Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, Senator representing Bayelsa East Senatorial District, has urged his colleague, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson to refrain from making malicious and unfounded statements that may trigger violence in the Niger Delta, Vanguard Newspaper reports.
Degi made the statement while reacting to reports quoting Senator Dickson accusing Chief Timipre Sylva, minister of state for petroleum resources, of reducing the host communities development fund in the PIB to 3% as against 5%.
According to him, “The true story was that the PIB as an Executive Bill was represented to the National Assembly proposing 2.5% of the total operational cost as host communities development trust funds.
“The lead debate was hot and protracted in both chambers. Lawmakers from the Niger Delta region including myself spoke, argued for an upward increase commensurate to our contributions and sacrifices.
“During the public hearing at various centres, host communities canvassed the same position.
“After rigorous and painstaking process from plenary to conference committee, the National Assembly put the host community funds at 3%.
“This was a National Assembly decision and not that of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva.”
He accused Senator Dickson of not mobilizing support for host communities, during his reign as governor of Bayelsa state.
“One wonders how and why Sen. Dickson would drag Sylva into this. Observers would be tempted to ask what efforts he, Sen. Dickson made to achieve the utmost desire as the bill was presented to NASS when he was still Governor.
“Other Governors from the region rallied around their people and even lobbied lawmakers from other regions to support the increase in the host community development fund.
“Ex-Gov. Dickson did nothing as he was contented with spending 13% derivation on aggressive development of his own villages which are not host communities leaving the oil and gas producing host communities to suffer their fate.
“It is ridiculous to see him fighting pretentiously for host communities. Dickson lacks the moral grounds to criticise or attack Sylva’s innocence.
“I can see that Sen. Dickson is just being envious, mischievous, and intimidated by the astronomically rising profile of Sylva.”
Mangrovepen.ng gathered that Sen. Dickson in a news conference on Thursday in Abuja stated that the presence of Chief Timipre Sylva and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mele Kyari, rubbished an earlier agreement by senators to peg the host community trust fund at five per cent.
