THE SCORN OF OIL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

Many of the oil companies are just as powerful as the Country where they are based, so they reject any serious form of supervision in the developing countries. Standing between us and some modest production of electricity right now, are oil companies incessant gas flaring that can be converted into powering our new idle gas turbines. Their business is to make and maximize profit anyhow they can. Needless to say, they are lords who can make or break the economy of each of the banana republic they get more profit out of.. Comparatively, we must admit, they pay their loyal local workers more and use them to influence the sociopolitical situation in their host countries.

One fact we agree on in Nigeria is that oil has become a curse rather than a blessing. As the amount of oil produced in Nigeria increased since the fifties, our environment has been polluted almost beyond repairs, we have abandoned fish and other agricultural ways of sustaining ourselves and have simply became idle waiting for oil returns. Unintended pipe explosions kill so many. Since the oil companies know we depend on them, they have become obstinate defying our law and regional custom without any tangible sense of responsibility.

On strategic economic development sectors, we have sought their assistance and cooperation. In spite of our appeal to reduce gas flaring and enhance its economic gain, they refuse to budge. We were forced to try and regulate them by deadlines that have proven abortive. In a few cases, we have tried to work with their governments who promised to help but only to tell us these are private companies that can not be dictated to, as in other countries with socialist culture. Natural gas can be converted to driving gas turbines for electric power stations, domestic and West African needs as done elsewhere.

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However, if developing countries take drastic steps against some of these international companies, their home government suddenly shed the posture of none interference. They become hostile threatening to ruin the economy of developing countries unless their home based companies have their ways. We have examples of these in India, Pakistan and East Africa with Enron. This is a company that went wild defrauding poor countries and eventually shareholders in their own Country.

The case of how the oil companies brought the State of California in United States to its knees in the 1990s, causing energy crisis that led to economic and political instabilities is still very fresh in the minds of Americans. Like Nigeria that did not build a single new power station for 15 years, decade old power plants were operating at low capacities in need of high maintenance, created high demand unmet by energy providers. Deregulation did not work as companies sold energy outside California turning a State as big as Nigeria into rolling blackouts. That is our familiar perpetual experience in Nigeria.

What is even more painful is that the fault is not theirs alone. Nigeria has never been in short supply of leeches that are ready to stick a hot shaft through their own mother or Country just to get their loot. So in our case, a Country that produces oil has no adequate capacity to refine enough oil for the masses. We have to depend on those who do not wish us well to import refined oil while Nigerian looters established oil refineries in other countries. Of course we sell crude oil for less and they sell refined oil to us for more.

It is under this climate that oil companies operate in Nigeria. In spite of our laws, we still do not know how much profit is made from our Country. In United States and Europe, oil companies declared record profits as a result of their foreign investment, mainly from developing countries of Asia, Africa and South America. Japan, China and now India demand more crude oil for their industries while our own reserves dwindle for our future industrial take off, as we waste more natural gas by flaring than any country in the world.

Nigeria is one of the greatest importers of generators from these rich countries because of inadequate gas supply to power our idle turbines for enough electricity to meet our local minimal demands. We create trade balance surplus in their favor. We all know a country cannot become partially or marginally industrialized without adequate electricity supply. If we do, we may become somehow self reliant in certain sectors, drying up markets for our “free trading” partners.

In order to help us supply our industries and people with electricity, we asked some of the major companies operating in our Country to establish National Integrated Power Project as a joint venture with the Government. So far only AGIP has established power project. Many others were interested but after consultation with their parent companies at the home head office, the answer varies from procrastination to lack of willingness. Some of us have lived through this before.

Ajaokuta Steel Company was supposed to revolutionize our industrial sector. Our natural partner should have been the British, they were not. The American could have, but they did not. We were forced to go to the Russians. The Russians knew they were approached as a last resort, so they could dictate terms to us more favorable than the English and the Americans. The fact that the archaic steel industry has not found its bearing in Nigeria today comes back to our fault, not Russians, Americans or British. Look at the way we killed our car assembly plants in the 1980s with imports.

We pour so much money into Ajaokuta, it became a cash cow for the same people entrenched in the system who will not allow our PHCN to fly today. Any allocation is shared for pleasure first before business. If it took about two years to flush them out of NEPA, how long did it take to flush them out of Ajaokuta, if they actually left?

They are so powerful; no head of state could expose them. Any leader that dared them, did it at a risk. Not even our almighty Abacha who fired the Sultan. But for some reasons, Bole Ige and Ribadu thought they could. When all the military politicians were fired, we thought our Nigeria, shaken to its core, will not stand. It did and they have regrouped under Danjuma’s oil blockers.

If we stop pandering to foreign companies chief executives and deal with them as patriotic Nigerian ( if there is any among them) serious about our development, as Venezuela has done, in exchange for their continued business enterprises in Nigeria, we may get them to declare their cooked profit and tax them accordingly. They may become socially responsible reducing tension in Niger Delta, stop gas flaring and join our venture in NIPP by providing needed gas for our turbines. Hey, PHCN may come back to life.

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However, Nigeria keeps on doing the same thing as every Messiah comes and goes, with promises of probe after probe without any appreciable result. Nigerians are not daft. We have many solutions to our problems but each time someone rises up to choose the right solution, we cut him down. Up to today, we have not realized the fruit of the War Against Indiscipline Buhari chose; we can not fathom the fruit of Babangida who overthrew him and later paved the way for Abacha; we still do not know the significant role of Shonekan and Abubakar; nor have we seen the fruit of Obasanjo National Integrated Power Projects that came 15 years late after old Shikoro Power Station was completed.

Each and every head of state alive must give us an account of the investment they made in the steel and power industries during their reign. What we have now are Ole beating their chests amazed at how much Barawo spent compared to a little they had and Oyeosi determined to probe them all. That is why we are not blaming the oil companies alone for our problems; they have entrenched leaders who aid and abet as lobbyist amongst us. A Nigerian tailored spontaneous, yet unorganized silent revolution is catching fire. If you associate with looters or invite them to your naming, wedding, birthday, burial or book launching ceremonies, the fire of indignation of talikawa will consume you to disrepute.

By Farouk Martins Aresa