By Dapo Akinrefon
MR Tony Uranta is a Niger Delta activist and Executive Secretary of the United Niger Delta Energy Development Security Strategy, UNDEDSS. In this interview, Uranta expresses his reservations about the oil companie relocating to the Niger Delta noting that the oil companies are merely giving excuse to shy away from their responsibilities. Excerpts:

Uranta

How do you see the Presidential directive to oil companies to relocate to the Niger Delta?

I think it is over due that people should be located where they operate. It makes economic sense. For example, because the oil companies are not located there, they constantly need to fly in and out of there. So, coming from the angle of the oil companies themselves, it should have made sense to them in the first place but they have not done that and the government should have made them to do that which should have made economic sense. But over and beyond that, the relocating of headquarters is not, on its own alone the only economic shot that the region needs, these international oil companies have to be involved in the urgent creation of economic networks and centers. For example the petrochemicals and oil related industries that will ultimately create employment . If you do not create employment, you are not going to have a trickle down effect of any economic benefit that will come to the region eventually when it does get there.

But do you think the oil companies will take to this directive considering their perceived fears of insecurity in the region?

The oil companies, for example, have relocated in Iran, Iraq, Syria, Kuwait even during the most turbulent crisis. The oil companies are merely giving excuse to shy away from their responsibilities. I can say this to them. At a recent meeting just two week ago, it has been decided that if by 90 days from that day, the oil companies do not show signs of acceding to the government’s position, we in the region will be forced to break every agreement we have with the government just to show the oil companies that we don’t need them to survive. In fact, they are more of a nuisance than a benefit.

Sometimes, we have to cut our noses and spite our faces if we want to grow and a situation of isolationism may be seen by the world very soon in the Niger Delta.

But don’t you think isolating yourselves would affect the major revenue of the the country…

(Cuts in) I am so surprised each time people talk about the revenue of the country. Is the country more important than the people of the country? The people in the Niger Delta are suffering, they are not being cared for and so, if anybody does not care to make sure that things are done to accelerate the improvement or the betterment of the lives of the people of the Niger Delta, to hell with the national revenue. That is my position.

Aside this relocation directive which some argue would bring about development, what other steps should be taken to alleviate the plight of the region?

All these issues have been talked about over and over again. My discussing it through the media is not important. The Minister for Petroleum discussing it through the media is not important, the Vice President when he was acting president even paying visits to the Niger Delta and making proclamations that are not yet backed by law and by action, is not important.

We, of the region, created a body representing us called the Pan Niger Delta Forum. The Pan Niger Delta Forum has only one demand and request that government should sit with us and state what government would do. By the way, at that same meeting two weeks ago, it was so decided that within the same 90 days, there might be a collapse of every seeming understanding between government and the region, we may have uprising, disturbances and destruction. I can say this for sure, the sooner government begins to chase substance instead of shadows, the better for us.

What is your take on plan by the federal government to grant amnesty to more militants?

That is just a side effect. We are interested in one thing, government has to come to the table, government is going to regret what it is doing very soon because it has refused to come to the engagement table with PANDEF, all these are mere distractions and beating about the bush. The government must engage PANDEF and PANDEF as it is presently constituted. It is not up to government to form us into any image according to what it wants us to be. We are Niger Deltans, we are going to remain Niger Deltans and whether Nigeria remains or not, we shall remain Niger Deltans.