LAGOS AUGUST 19TH (URHOBOTODAY)-The umbrella body of the Urhobo people, Urhobo Progress Union (UPU) has asked the federal government to site the proposed headquarters of the Gas Flare Trust Fund in Urhobo land, in Delta State.
In a letter signed by the President-General of UPU Worldwide, Olorogun Moses Taiga, the UPU said, Urhobos are host of some of the largest gas fields in Nigeria, with the Ughelli East and Utorogun Gas fields being the largest gas plant in West Africa. It added that these fields are served by oil flow stations, pumping stations and the gas plants.
The UPU asserted that, “Urhobo Ethnic Nationality has been a host to major oil and gas assets since the discovery of petroleum in Nigeria producing oil and gas from – Afiesere, Eriemu, Osioka, Evwreni, and Oroni fields (in OML 30); Ughelli, Ughelli East, Utorogu, Effurun, Ward River and Orholfields(in OML 34), Okwefe, Amukpe, Okporhuru, and Mosogar, Ovhor and Orhogho (in OML 38), Sapele, Ubaleme, Okoporo fields (in OML 41), Matsogo field(in OML 56), Aroh, Okwefe , Deep and Oghareki Fields (in OML 49), et cetera.
The UPU said, “We already have existing facilities for the take-off activities of the National Headquarters of the Gas Flare Trust Fund. In addition, we have also earmarked a large land mass for construction if new facilities need to be built.”
The UPU further anchored its request for locating the National Headquarters of the Gas Flare Trust Fund in Urhobo land on the fact that “we took a cursory look at the Oil and Gas development agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria for oil and gas producing areas and imparted communities and locations of their headquarters Commission- Niger Delta Development Commission – Port Harcourt(Rivers); Petroleum Trust Development Fund – Kaduna (Kaduna); Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project – Port Harcourt (Rivers); Nigerian Content Management Board Yenegua (Bayelsa) and National Petroleum Development Company – Benin- City (Edo).”
The letter was routed through the Secretary to the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, while the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Agboola Gambari and the Chairman of HOSTCON Board of Trustees and Amayanombo of Brass, HRM, Alfred Diete-Spiff, were copied.