Why international oil companies are leaving Nigeria — NDDC MD

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, has provided more insight into why International Oil Companies (IOCs) are divesting from onshore operations. Ogbuku said attacks on pipelines belonging to the IOCs are not the only reason they are divesting, selling off onshore assets, moving offshore, or, in some cases, exiting the Niger Delta region. He revealed that part of the reason is the huge sums of money these multinational oil companies are made to pay as compensation following court judgments. Dr Ogbuku made the assertion while speaking at the NDDC Law and Development Summit, themed ‘The Role of Law in Driving Sustainable Development in the Niger Delta Region,’ held in Port Harcourt on Wednesday. According to Ogbuku, these firms believe that, aside from contending with heavy taxes, they are spending substantial amounts and losing money through compensation payments to communities that take them to court for one reason or another. While stressing the importance of law, Ogbuku said any society without law would revert to a state of nature. “And that is why, in our philosophical theory of social contract, John Locke and Thomas Hobbes talked about their various theories of how man lived in a state of nature where it was lawless, and then it was all about survival of the fittest and jungle justice. “And today, man is living in a civil society governed by laws. But even the laws that man is being guided by are tailored towards specific societies. “That is why when you look at the Lockean theory of social contract, you can see it reflects American democracy. But the Hobbesian philosophy of social contract reflects that of British democracy.” He continued: “If we ask ourselves what our own philosophical foundations of law are, we take a little from here and a little from there to make our laws,” which is why he said the summit was germane. Related News UK to restrict universities’ sponsorship of international students over visa abuse State House retirees among first to benefit from new gratuity scheme — Presidency Police Arrest Four Suspected Cultists, Recover Weapons In Lagos “Sometimes, if you look at some of our laws, various states have their own amendments to their laws, especially their criminal laws, but we must also look at how these laws affect us as a people. “One thing I know too well today is that IOCs divest from onshore to offshore and sometimes want to sell their assets to local operators. “We ask ourselves how much the local operators have to fund oil production. One of the ma