Activists Oppose Proposed Commission On Oil, Gas Installations

Activists, carrying placards in protest, under the aegis of Energy Reforms Advocates of Nigeria (ERAN), on Sunday protested in Abuja against the plan to create a new commission to decommission oil and gas installations.

The proposed new commission was contained in a bill at the Senate named, National Commission for the Decommissioning of Oil and Gas Installations (NC-DOGI) Bill, 2024.

ERAN’s executive director, Comrade Abba Henry, gave insight into the proposed law, calling it “another feeding bottle for the boys” and “a poisoned dagger aimed at the heart of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).”

“Nigeria is broke. Our debt is choking us. Yet some senators want to birth a brand-new commission that will swallow billions just to watch old pipes rust,” Abba said.

“We already have the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).

“They have the staff, the laws, the labs, and the muscle to decommission any platform from Bonny to Forcados.

“Why create a third referee when the field already has two?”

The activists warned that NC-DOGI will only breed confusion, scare investors, and open fresh pipelines for corruption.

“One agency will approve the plan, another will supervise the cutting, and the third will fight over who collects the contractor’s kickback. Investors hate chaos.

“They will simply take their dollars to Ghana,” Abba said.

He reminded reporters that the PIA, signed only four years ago after twenty years of labour, is still settling.

“The ink is still wet. Don’t tear the book to add a new chapter nobody asked for.”

ERAN unveiled a five-word battle cry—“KILL THIS BILL”—and promised to flood the National Assembly gates with petitions, live-stream town halls in every oil community from Eket to Yenagoa, and drag the bill to court if it smells passage.

“Nigerians are awake. We will name and shame every senator who votes for this money-guzzler. History will record their greed,” the director vowed.

Speaking directly to the Senate President and Speaker of the House, Abba issued a blunt ultimatum: “Do not keep it alive. Do not smuggle it.

“Do not rename it. Bury it today so Nigeria can breathe tomorrow.”