The Senate has issued a one-week ultimatum to the management of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited to appear before its Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions and show evidence of compensating 73 host communities in Rivers State with N18bn.
The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, issued the summons on Wednesday when the chamber considered a report by the committee on the refusal by the NLNG to pay compensation for lands acquired from the communities.
The report followed a petition filed by one Chief Enyinna Onuegbu on behalf of the communities located in Obiafu, Soku and Bonny, respectively.
The Senate suspended consideration of the report midway, pending the outcome of the invitation to the NLNG.
Lawan, while issuing the summons, said, “Instead of just saying NLNG should go and pay N18bn, and at the end of the day nothing happens, let us give NLNG one more chance and this should be by the Senate itself, not our committee.
“I am sure NLNG is listening. NLNG should appear within one week before our Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions with their evidence of compensation. “If they fail, then the Senate will take a decision on NLNG in this respect.”
THe Chairman of the committee, Senator Ayo Akinyelure, in his presentation, said, “Following the incorporation of the NLNG, it acquired landed properties in Rivers State in 1996, spanning over 210km, for use as its pipelines Right of Way, which ended at the export terminal of the NLNG in Finima Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State.
“NLNG neither proved nor showed evidence to the committee that it paid compensation to the 73 communities for loss of use of their land to pipelines ROW; and that there was no Memorandum of Understanding signed between the communities and NLNG on future obligations in the name of Corporate Social Responsibility with the impacted communities.”
The lawmaker said there was evidence that other oil companies such as Shell Petroleum Development Company, Total Fina Elf Petroleum Nigeria Limited, Agip Oil Corporation paid compensation for loss of use of land to their host communities.
“The Communities were claiming the sum of N18,448,842,500.00, being compensation for the loss of use of their land as at May, 2020,” he said.
Source: Punch