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Nigeria: Oil Block Bid Deficient - Minister
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Leadership (Abuja)
24 July 2008
Posted to the web 24 July 2008
Philip Nyam
Abuja
Are we managing our petroleum resources well? Are there wastages in the system? Are our processes complete and sacrosanct?" These were the questioned posed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Bankole, when he declared that oil was one of Nigeria's major problems.
But the Minister of Energy (Petroleum), Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, yesterday confirmed that there were lapses in the bid process for allocation of oil blocks and management of the petroleum sector.
The speaker, who made the revelation Wednesday in Abuja while declaring open the investigation of NNPC, its subsidiaries and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) by the House of Representatives, said oil had become an illusion in Nigeria, adding that the activities of militants, such as kidnapping, were capable of consuming the entire country if not properly addressed.
"If care is not taken, it will begin to move out of the Niger Delta and consume the whole nation. It is not only a Niger Delta problem, nor a Nigerian problem, but a global problem.
"It is important to state that may be oil is part of our problem. To me and some of us, oil money seems to be like an illusion, it seems to be something that will cause more problems than we imagine. We have deluded ourselves for the past forty years".
He denied that the investigation of the NNPC was a witch-hunt of certain persons, explaining that the exercise was only to find a solution to the problems bedeviling the sector.
According to the speaker, oil has not yielded commensurate dividends in terms of accountability and transparency, warning that since the issues in the global oil market today is quantum, "If we fail in our capacity and capability of responding in equal measure, we would have disappointed our generation and posterity".
He lamented that countries with less potentials than Nigeria have surpassed it in most parameters of the global developmental index, saying our lack of 'commitment to the ideals of constitutionalism, fair play, equity, justice and rule of law' were responsible for our backwardness.
In his presentation at the occasion, Minister of Energy (Petroleum), Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, confessed that the Nigeria's oil industry was faced with a lot of daunting challenges. He said the contracting process in the NNPC was a major obstacle to the fluid operation of the corporation.
Responding to the questions posed by the speaker, the minister said "These are very pertinent and important questions. Are we managing our resources well? There are clear lapses in the system. Are there wastages? Certainly, there are wastages. Are our processes complete and sacrosanct? I will say no".
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He said due to the problems militating against the corporation, Nigeria was producing only 1.9 million barrels of oil as against 3.2 million barrels of oil. Speaking on the 2007 bid round for oil blocks, the minister insisted that it was the largest and most ambitious as it raised more money than others.
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