Bayelsa fishermen advocate establishment of Oil Producing Areas Development Commission

Artisanal fishermen from the oil bearing communities of Bayelsa, have called for the establishment of an Oil Producing Areas Development Commission in the state.

The fishermen, under the aegis of Artisan Fishermen Association of Nigeria (ARFAN), Bayelsa chapter, made the call in interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Yenagoa.

ARFAN Chairperson in the state, Elizabeth Egbe, said that the establishment of the commission had become necessary in order to ensure the rapid development of the oil producing areas.

Egbe said that the oil producing communities were grossly neglected and the situation was contrary to the derivation principle enshrined in the constitution.

She noted that the derivation principle provided 13 per cent of the country’s oil revenue for the development of the oil producing states, including Bayelsa.

The chairperson argued that the oil bearing communities of the state should have a fair share of the derivation fund accruing to the state in terms of development.

According to her, the coastal communities which suffered environmental pollution from frequent oil spills, gas flares and other impacts of oil production were denied the benefits of the fund.

Egbe said that the frequent spills had wiped out generations of fish in the waters, while the people who are predominantly fishermen could no longer fish as a result of the pollution.

She said that the development had also compelled them to drink polluted water.

“The lopsided allocation of resources accruing to Bayelsa as oil producing state is an irony of fate. Our people have been neglected and this is morally unjustifiable.

“How can we receive billions of naira every month from the derivation fund only for it to be deployed into the development of other parts of the state?

“There is need to urgently set up an Oil Producing Areas Development Commission to ensure that the 13 per cent derivation fund touches the oil bearing communities.

“We have to take a look at these communities and be fair to them by setting aside a proportion of what is received as derivation fund for their specific needs.

“That way, the ideals of the derivation principle will be realised and the people will have a sense of belonging,” she said.

The chairperson noted that other states in the Niger Delta region had established similar bodies which she said were funded from the proceeds of the derivation revenue.

Egbe said the establishment of the commission would ensure rapid development of the rural areas as well as check rural-urban migration, youth restiveness and other vices.