By Ephraim Oseji

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain in Delta State, Chief Sunny Onuesoke has described the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) recently passed by both the Senate and House of Representative as a coup against host communities.

In the passed PIB Bill,   the House of Representative allocated 5%  to host community clause, while 30% of profit on oil will be used for frontier explorations. On the other hand, the Senate allocated three percent to host communities.

Onuesoke, who addressed journalists in his office in Warri, Delta State, yesterday, said: “The content of the PIB is a ploy to further rob the south that produces the oil and pay the north that doesn’t produce a single drop of oil.

“It is worrisome that the Senate cut down compensations payment for host communities from five percent to three percent against the cries of southern senators and redefined host community to mean any community that oil pipeline passes through.

“The National Assembly came up with a fraudulent jargon called ‘Frontier Exploration’ for which they have earmarked 30 per cent of NNPC profits for the servicing of these frontier explorations yearly.

“By implication, host communities will now imply all states that don’t produce oil but have oil pipeline passing through them, which automatically makes some northern states that don’t produce oil to become host communities and henceforth will benefit from compensations.

“The host communities deserved fair treatment as it had suffered long years of environmental pollution and injustice despite producing the wealth that had sustained the health of Nigeria.”