Saraki promises Nigerians better deal in petroleum legislation

Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, says Nigerians have a lot to gain in the recently passed Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) by the National Assembly.
According to him when signed into law, the issues of exploitation and exploration of petroleum resources in the country would be solved.

He spoke yesterday at the opening of a three-day Nigerian content workshop in Owerri, Imo State with the theme, Maximising the Nigerian Content Policy for Sustainable Business Growth and National Development.

Represented by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), Tayo Alasoadura, Saraki said the passage of the bill was consistent with the determination of the National Assembly to continually legislate on good bills that centre on welfare of the citizens, efficiency in the oil and gas sector, among others.

He noted that piece of legislation was split into four categories namely Petroleum Industry Governance Bill; Petroleum Industry Administration Bill; Petroleum Industry Fiscal Bill and Petroleum Host Community Bill to fast-track their passage into law.

The Senate President recalled that the upper chamber of the National Assembly had, via a motion, established the need to ensure greater degree of local content in the nation’s oil and gas sector.

The host Governor Rochas Okorocha pledged to donate land and office accommodation to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) for the development of oil and gas sector in the state.

He told its Executive Secretary, Simbi Wabote, that the state government had set aside over 20,000 hectares of land for industrial park, expressing desire to partner the board and those in oil and gas industry for the development of the state.Okorocha urged the Federal Government to consider the state as a hub for economic development.