Oil Community Petitions Reps, Others Over Exclusion From Trust Fund

Esit Eket local government area, one of the oil-bearing communities of Niger Delta, has protested the alleged non-inclusion in the Host Community Development Trust Fund (HCDTF) by Tulcan Energy.

LEADERSHIP gathered the extractive firm with Oil Mining License (OML 14) at Ntak Inyang location in Esit Eket, has commenced exploration with Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report for effective monitoring of activities in line with international best practices and as enshrined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

The protest is championed by the affected community under the auspices of Network Advancement Program for Poverty and Disaster Risks Reduction (NAPDDRR), a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) committed to environmental and humanitarian justice in the Niger Delta.

Consequently, the NAPDRR executive director, Hon. Emem Edoho, who spoke to our correspondent in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital yesterday, stated that a petition had been forwarded to the House of Representatives Committee on Host Communities chaired by  Hon. Dumnamene Robinson Dekor.

He disclosed that the petition elicited immediate response from Dekor, with assurance of a tripartite dialogue involving his committee, the community and the firm on how to resolve the impeding crisis.

In the petition tagged; “Protest Over Non Inclusion Of Esit Eket Host Community In Tulcan l Energy HCDT,” the community lamented over the devastating impacts of the mining of the oil well on host communities, and urged for immediate intervention to save affected zones.

The NAPPDRR, an environmental and transparency rights NGO operating in the Niger Delta, writes to protest the exclusion of Esit Eket host communities from the Tulcan Energy Host Community Development Trust (HCDT), the petition protest letter reads.

“The OML 14 Stubbs Creek operations are historically and traditionally located within Unyenghe -Ntak Inyang –  Ine Akpautong communities in Esit Eket LGA.

“The Petroleum Industry Act 2021 and the NUPRC Host Communities Development Regulations 2022 mandate that settlors establish HCDTs to ensure host communities benefit directly from petroleum operations in their area,” Edoho stated.

But he lamented that “Tulcan Energy Resources Ltd, the operator of OML 14, has excluded Ntak Inyang and Ine Akpautong communities from its HCDT composition.”

He said this exclusion contradicts the intent of the PIA 2021, which seeks to correct historical neglect, promote equity, and foster peaceful coexistence between settlors and host communities.

He noted that “this action is inconsistent with precedent in the area,” pointing out that ‘the Seplat Energy/NNPCL JV EMOIMEE HCDT covers Mbo, Esit Eket, and six other LGAs.

He pointed out that  the Universal Energy/Savannah Energy HCDT which also included Esit Eket and Mbo LGAs  in line with the Privy Council Judgement of 1918,  further vested concomitant rights over Stubbs Creek operations in Esit Eket LGA.

“On behalf of the marginalized people of Ntak Inyang and Ine Akpautong in Esit Eket LGA, we demand an urgent review and revision of the composition of the Tulcan Energy HCDT to include Ntak Inyang and Ine Akpautong communities,” he demanded.

The community, therefore, urged the House Committee on Host Communities to intervene and ensure Tulcan Energy complies with Sections 235-240 of the PIA 2021 and the NUPRC Regulations 2022.