अप्पोंत्मेंट्स इन NIGERIA'स OIL थे गैस INDUSTRY

APPOINTMENTS IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY

At its recent meetings in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, South-South governors called on the federal government to review recent appointments in the oil and gas industry. The call, though belated, was a reaction to the lopsidedness in appointments in the industry. Some persons have tagged it the Northernisation of the oil industry. Contracts, employment and even allocation of oil blocks and other oil related activities tend to bend towards people from areas that have produced past heads of these companies and parastatals. There is a correlation between the headship of these companies and employment into them. In Nigeria people from certain tribes, states, and zones tend to dominate certain industry not because they are they best but as a result of the lopsided recruitment and promotion when one of their own was in the leadership saddle.

In a country that boasts of federal character and quota system, in its constitution, these constitutional provisions were not taken into consideration in the recent appointments. Even if the Niger Delta did not have oil, the Willinks Commission recommended that the region should be treated as a special federal territory which means some preferential treatments should be given to natives of the Delta. We deserve this special treatment no because we are inferior but because in Nigeria the larger tribes want to have it all. But God in his infinite mercies, and wisdom, foresaw that the people would amount to nothing in the emerging Nigerian federation decided to deposit oil and gas in their environment to give them relevance in Nigeria.

The Delta is not only relevant in Nigeria because when you hold the map of Africa like a gun you will realize that the Delta is the trigger, this shows the importance of the region not only in the continent but in world affairs. No one can ignore the importance and role of a trigger in a rifle: so is the Niger Delta region. As people of little strength who cannot contend with the larger ethnic groups, God gave the Niger Delta oil so that the can also be powerful. This has serve as a balance of power between the major tribes and the minority Deltans.

The Bible says that God blesses a man to be a blessing to others so God’s blessings (oil and gas) to Niger Delta region should not be for people from this region alone other Nigerians should share it but the owners on the land should not be given the crumbs. Yes land belong to the government what about other regions that use their lands to cultivate cocoa, millet, cotton, tomato do they bring the proceeds from the sales of these crops to the national coffer for sharing as federal allocation? Remember that oil exploration and exploitation as well as gas flaring have rendered Niger Delta lands and waters infertile. We can no longer have bountiful harvests of palm fruits, fishes, shrimps and periwinkles like before.

Nigerian government, leaders and people have been insensitive to the plight and feelings of the Deltans. Where indigenes of these oil bearing communities are reduced to hewers of wood is not fair. These people and their communities are bearing and will continue to bear, after the oil and gas resources have been exhausted, the negative effects of oil exploitation. They are stakeholders and should take the lion share of the goodies accruing from oil revenue. Qualified natives deserved jobs in the oil industry. One is not advocating for mediocrity or employment of unqualified persons but qualified indigenes should be recruited. We have federal character, quota system and waivers for educationally disadvantaged states which take care of some disadvantaged states why not adopt this in the oil industry with emphasis on qualified locals.

A friend even made an observation that some universities in part of the country mass produced first class and second class graduates so that when these companies advertised with first class as minimum grade only those from this region would be qualified to apply. This mass production of first class graduates do not represent academic execellence but a ploy to give some section a head start in the ever shrinking job market so that they can perpetually dominate the nation economy and others like the Deltans would be referred to being lazy and never do wells.There is also a ploy where Nigerians who studied abroad are recruited as expatriates. There is nothing wrong with this but trust Nigerians when they arrive the country they would live up to type and play the ethnic card by facilitating the employment of “his people” to the detriment of the natives.

Why should oil and gas companies operating in the Niger Delta region conduct their aptitude tests and interviews in Lagos and Abuja? How many applicants from the Delta can afford the transport fare and hotel bills to attend these interviews and tests. NLNG and Exxon Mobil are culprits. This is a clear statement that the Deltans are not wanted in their companies. Why should the place be conducive for you to do business and it is not good enough to hold tests and interviews?

It is a pity that some opinion and community leaders in the Delta would prefer contracts and handouts from the companies rather than insist on the employment of their indigenes especially where these chiefs or opinion leaders have no children who are qualified for such positions. There is a story of a young man who scaled through an aptitude test of an oil company and an inside source advised him to get in touch with his State Liason Officer, his is from one of the oil bearing states, the chief told the young man that two of his children took the test and failed, so the young man should also try and get the job the way he passed the test without his help.

Another young man narrated a story of how he passed the attitude test and during the interview was asked if he knew anybody in an American oil company and he said no. That was the end but his friend who failed the test lamented that if only he had made the minimum score the job would have been his- this also shows that the much talked about quality, excellence and merit do not always count during recruitment exercises of these oil multi nationals. So after all it is who you know not what you know.

The Petroleum Development Trust Fund scholarship should be given to all Nigerians but some dedicated slots should allotted to the oil producing states with emphasis to the oil bearing communities. It is not enough for the oil companies to say that the oil communities have no qualified indigenes to fill vacancies but what have they done in the more than 50 years of oil exploration to develop quality manpower from these oil bearing communities? Some oil companies even prefer Nigerians who studied abroad, if one may ask how many locals from these oil bearing communities have they oil companies send abroad from education? Does it mean that any one who attended any school abroad is turn into a genius or an expert? I believe that education is like salvation: it is more of personal endeavor than the name of your school or church.

In trying to douse the agitation and violence in the Niger Delta its qualified indigenes should be appointed and employed into key positions in the oil and gas industry. Employing locals as drivers and watchmen for oil pipelines is not enough as it only introduce the natives the good life that the oil workers are living from proceeds of their lands. It only serve short term purpose and breed anger, violence, bunkering and kidnapping.