Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State, Tuesday, warned that the definition of a host community in the just-passed controversial Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, by the National Assembly was a time bomb if not properly addressed.
Governor Diri, who spoke, yesterday, when he featured as a guest on Channels Television breakfast current affairs programme, Sunrise Daily, said: “Governors did not wait until now to speak on the PIB. Speaking on behalf of my state, we had a position and it was made very clear during the public hearings.
“It is an unthinkable and total injustice to allot three per cent to oil-producing communities. We stated our position of 10 per cent.
“The definition of host communities or oil-producing communities is also worrisome. Oil-producing communities should not be where pipelines are laid. If the issue of what an oil-producing community is not addressed, it is a time bomb that could explode.”
“We must protect our people. That is why we have state assemblies. In Bayelsa, it has already come into force since March 11, 2021. Open grazing is no longer sustainable. We need to stop it.”
“But it is only natural justice for the south to produce the president after President Buhari’s eight years. It is not constitutional but a gentleman’s agreement to encourage cohesion and peaceful coexistence.”