Despite the plans, the people of the Niger Delta, including illegal refiners have not started to invest in modular refineries. In this interview with Udeme Akpan and other journalists, President Ijaw Youth Council, Pereotubo Roland Oweilaemi, speaks on conditions for peace in Niger Delta, restructuring, bailout for Niger Delta indigenes interested in ownership of modular refineries and marginal fields among others.

Pereotubo Roland Oweilaemi

Two years after Buhari, what do you have to say about peace in the Niger Delta?

Peace in the Niger Delta is inevitable and must be achieved irrespective of who is at the helm of affairs. It is important and we are working tirelessly to ensure that there is peace in the Niger Delta.  The government at the centre is trying to attend to some of our demands. It is expected that we give them some time to tackle the problems of the region.

At a time, there was a threat by one of the groups in the Niger Delta in response to the call for southerners, especially Igbo to leave the North. Then, another group came out to say that they wanted to send some people away. Yes, that’s an unfortunate notice that was given to the Igbo by the Northern YouthS Forum. It is uncalled for because we are a country and have vowed to live together.

The Niger Delta people are not saying that they want to live this country as at today. We are simply saying that we want restructuring, resource control, and it is an abomination for a group of people to say that the other people residing in Kano and Kaduna should relocate to Imo and Anambra states. I weigh it with all amount of seriousness, because today we might be saying that it is Hausa, or North and East; tomorrow it might spread to the entire South-South.

In other words, the falling of the green leaf is a warning to the red one. When the green leaf begins to fall, the red one should know that it might be the next one to fall. So that is why, all of us, irrespective of where we come from should take this quit notice seriously.

Do you consider modular refineries as a feasible and profitable business?

With due respect, I don’t want to agree that modular refineries if properly handled are not viable. I don’t agree with the proponent of that ideology. Modular refinery is a good gesture by the Federal Government. It is just to move away from oil theft and illegal oil bunkering. But the worry is that the people who are supposed to be empowered to do this, to operate modular refineries are not the people in charge. I mean the Niger Delta people, especially the Ijaw people, who are not doing the oil business properly. This is the essence of modular refineries.

We find out that the government is not giving the sons and daughters of Niger Delta the opportunity to own and operate modular refineries, because the conditions to get modular refineries are very stringent. For instance, the financial involvement is very huge and we do not have that kind of money. So, we are calling on the government to relax these conditions to enable us own and operate modular refineries.

Are you aware that DPR has reduced the initial deposit from one million dollars to one hundred and fifty thousand?

Yes, I am aware.  It’s still too much. We want further reduction. We have the oil but we have not been managing this oil. We don’t have a stake in it, so it should be relaxed, it should be brought down that we might also participate as equal owners in the project.

Do you have colleagues in the Niger Delta who have actually applied for licence?

How can you apply for something that you knew from the onset that you cannot start? We can’t apply because the cost implication is huge. You can’t say that the process is open and they expect people from Niger Delta and Ijaw in particular to apply because you already know the demanding conditions.

Are you expecting bailout?

That is what we expect. As a matter of fact, we are calling on the government to give us a time frame, about five to10 years, get the modular refineries set up for a group of youths in the Niger Delta. The youths, who should be the owners of the plants, can run them and pay back to the government.

So what are you doing to reach out to those in authority concerning this particular issue?

Yes, we were talking to them. Some days ago, I was with my elder brother, the Special Adviser on Amnesty, and we had fruitful discussions on how we will ensure that there is peace in the Niger Delta region. Of course, you will agree with me that where there is no peace, you can’t attract development. So, it is our responsibility to ensure that there is peace in the Niger Delta. That is the panacea for development in the Niger Delta. We expect the government at different strata to do some basic things for us to get this peace we are looking for.

Now, still on peace, we’ve had different groups in Niger Delta after MEND. which one can we actually identify as the voice of Niger Delta?

What is important is that, irrespective of whether it is MEND or not, we are all from the same region. No matter the number of groups, what we are simply saying is that, we want to control our resources, we want true federalism. So, it is not an issue of how many groups we have.

So, how soon do you actually want to take over the control?

It is not going to be taken by force. It is a process and that is why we have started to discuss with others, especially the government. Let us discuss because so many things are wrong. Let us sit down and discuss the future of this country. We want to continue to be part of Nigeria but there are things that are wrong; and need to be corrected.

Now, talking about cleaning up of Ogoni, do you see the project on-going?

It is unfortunate that we don’t seem to see what should be happening now on site. The process is slow and we are not pleased about it. Ogoni is not the only place, it is peculiar but it is not the only place that requires cleanup in the Niger Delta. There are so many places that need to be cleaned.

How prepared are the youths of Niger Delta to control marginal oil fields?

We are very ready and capable to own and operate marginal fields. But the problem is that some people are saying that we are not capable. We have gone through a lot of skills acquisition. We have been trained. We have Ijaw sons and daughters, people from the Niger Delta that can own marginal fields and operate them successfully.