 Don't Ascend to PIB, Nigel Delta Youth, Tal Bahari, and Chairman of the People's Democratic Party, UK Secondary Experiences, Some Relief as Board of Justice, Tackle, UK, and Rejection Terence Kershaka for Unity. This is plus politics and I am Mary Ann McCormick. A coalition of Nigel Delta Youth groups has called on President Mohammed Bahari to not Ascend to the Petronum Industry Bill recently passed by the Senate. The coalition said they reject the 3% approved for host communities saying the entire PIB was a fraud against the oil-producing communities of the Nigel Delta people. Speaking on behalf of the coalition at a media briefing in Fort Hackert, Solomon Lenu called for the urgent review of the PIB to reflect the views of the host communities he added that the action of the Senate undermines 65 years of all discovery and exploration activities in the region and the resultant devastation of the environment there. For joining us to discuss this is Thomson Okorote, he is the Deputy National Chairman of PANDAF. Thank you very much Mr. Okorote for joining us. Great, I want us to start by looking at the PIB, I mean there had been a weekend where every single Nigerian was talking about the PIB, the fact that the host communities felt robbed, the fact that a certain percentage was going to be devoted to fine oil in the Chad region, I mean there was an opera of sorts and you know people hoped that there would be a shift of grounds by members of the Senate but that hasn't changed and now it depends, everybody is looking at Mr. President obviously hoping for him to either assent or not assent to that PIB bill but it has taken years for this bill to get to where it is. Should we be still dragging our feet on the matter or should we allow for it to be assented to and then continue negotiations, where does PANDAF stand on this? It is a great shame for this country that we have refused repeatedly to create a sense of belonging for all Nigerians, for over four, six decades we have been fighting for justice. Every time you look into all Nigerians falsely or continue to reject us or continue to listen to us, after 65 years they have come to pass a law that is referred as support of a national leader who is saying that belonging should not sign, give assent to the bill. It is absolutely correct, first of all, why should they talk about it? To present of operating costs to be used to explore and frontier things. That is the fault. The oil that was discovered in the Niger Delta, we did not use genuine money, it is a private business and those who are exploring oil in those countries will invest their money and so that itself is the fault. Secondly, the disparity between 3% and 5%. We have issued a statement, they communicate saying we are for the 5%, yet with impunity they have gone for 3%. We are putting all of this together and finding that we regret to belong to this country. Nobody is listening to us and it is where you want justice. If it is for justice, it should let this issue be clarified before it signs a few percent review. That's what I think. Well, let's break it down. I know that the box stops at Mr. President's table and we are dealing with issues like this, we always finger the President but then the Niger Delta does have representatives at both the upper chamber and the lower chamber. You have states like Baelsa, Qui-Bung, and Delta, Cross River and maybe Annambra, the states that are all producing. They have representatives, they have legislators at all of these levels and these are the people who obviously are from those communities who know and understand the plight of their people and they proceeded to stick with the 3%, including the minister who also is from the River Rhine area, he is part of all producing communities. So really, can we put this blame solely at the fit of Mr. President? You said that our leaders don't listen to us but that means it starts with even those guys who say that they are representing us. And what does this say about leadership generally? What we are saying is that the public should take that by refusing to add sense. All the representatives that they are talking about from the Niger Delta area have done their best. What you do not understand is that there is a majority in both chambers that do not allow justice to reign. At the same the majority will have their way and the minority will have their thing. What is happening here is that in both chambers of the National Assembly our people are in minority. It is not that they have not been talking, it is not that they have not been fighting but they have just been shouted down. That is true. Now we will talk about population, some figures that have been run from foundations of this country and it is playing out to perfect interactions against minorities. This is the country that is not looking at people who needs justice, who is crying for justice. That is the issue. Our people did their best but the majority is bragging on. I am still pushing on this. I do not know how good enough their best is because whether they are in the minority or not if they feel strongly against the fact that this percentage is not good enough there is something called lobbying. They lobby their mates on the floor of the National Assembly for other matters. Why can't they lobby their mates on this particular issue? It seems like they are also okay with it and they are just paying lip service. I might be wrong but when you say they have tried their best and that is all they can do, I am not sure if that sits well with the people in the Niger Delta if that sits well with the people in the Oguni community that have not been able to fish, not to plant and for all the people who have had spills or destruction of the environment in their areas as a result of international or companies operations is that good enough? Can it sit with the people in the Niger Delta? Well, I tell you that I have personal knowledge of how best our people have tried. They have lobbied it. You remember a few years ago, Pande presented a 16-point agenda to Mr. President and it covered several areas of dissent by the people. At that time, if you remember, we ruled, our boys ruled and oil production was brought down to less than 1 million, 700,000. And with that presentation, the leadership of the Pande went ahead, broke at peace and asked the boys to go off the creeps and let the production go off again. Now, if that is not a lobby strategy, whatever, if there was a problem they know that if we try, the company will go wrong. We will end next. Let's talk about the consequence of this deal and how it will affect people in the area. I'd like to start with the issue of the militancy that also at the root of it was the fact that these all producing communities were giving into the nation's coffers but they were unable to benefit from the oil that was taking right from under them. How do we prevent this from happening if every single person and the voices in the Niger Delta, including that of Pande, is not enjoying the benefits of this PIB because they all seem to be kicking against it. How do we also avoid another resurgence of sorts that might become a problem for us in the Niger Delta? And that is the solution we are providing. Mr. President, you return the bill to the National Assembly and asking them to look at the concerns that have been raised by our people in the Niger Delta. And the case we have mentioned, it is jammed because if there is no redress, we are afraid that our boys who are already warming up may come back and we are receiving the punching. We went to appeal to them to issue the sort. Now there is another problem and they are warming up. We don't want that to happen. Let Mr. President, not a sense to return it back to the National Assembly to give them another opportunity of making sure that this issue is sorted out. Let's talk about the threat by host communities to redraw social licenses. What could be the implications of that economically for us? Well, it will be disastrous economically, it will not be too good at all. We were celebrating, some of them were celebrating that in 5% they can manage it and see how we can now make lives better in the rural areas. In the oil producing communities, you take it as a place like Oluibli. It is a shadow of its original self. You go to a place called Oluibli. And that is where the threat of oil was found in 1976. This is what we are talking about. And why should you take products from under our feet, from our belly, take it away and ignore the place? Because that is the result that is taking over and over again. Neglects while you are taking all the money. You look at a butcher, look at a butcher. It was oil money that had built the butcher. The people are saying that it will be unfair and they will protect, they will act. The implications of this will not be good for everybody. I haven't seen to hear here, rather I have not heard the voices of governors and the Niger Delta as much as I have heard voices of groups and CSOs and even certain Niger Delta youths. We haven't really heard governors kick against this or speak in a unifying voice. I am talking about governors of the oil producing communities. We haven't really heard from them. What do you think is responsible for the somewhat silence coming from those governors? Could that silence be misread as they being okay with what the House has already put out? The governors are not silent. They mix and they issue the communique. Containing the 30% and saying that the 5% is what they stand by. They have not been silent. The governors mix and issue the communique. The communique is great enough and I know but then we keep hearing voices of the people in the Niger Delta, people like Pandep, you know, pushing every day and asking government to do something. But let's move away from that quickly. Let's talk about, you know, who has powers to withdraw licenses. The host communities have said that they will do that. But is it not the place of the government to withdraw those social licenses? In the government, that is why we are saying that even the constitutional review that is being undertaken, I hope will be deep enough. There are several legislations that are not supposed to be at the federal level. You control everything. You have the oil. The everything about the oil and gas is on the exclusive legislative list. Which is not correct. And they have the power. They have all the power. And they are applying it. They are using it as an instrument of oppression. But that is where the danger is. The three absolute powers are absolutely. So what is the fate of the people in the Niger Delta? Do we wait for a constitutional amendment which may not happen anytime soon? Or do we take a PIB that is not necessarily something that sits well with us? Which should take priority over which? Because we do not know what is in the mind of the president if he is going to re-send to it or not. Whether he is going to listen to us or whether he is going to go with his guts. But what should take priority? Should the PIB put on pause while we wait for the constitution to be amended to reflect something that would help us to get the kind of value that we need to receive in the Niger Delta? The priority should be the PIB bill. If it is properly done, we can be going on with that while we wait for the constitutional amendment. That is why we ask that the president to return it. If he changes back, there will not be room for further amendment. Well, I want to say thank you to you. You are the national deputy chairman of PANDEF and he joined us live from BIOSA. Thank you so much for speaking with us. We appreciate it. Thank you very much and God bless you. Keep on the fight. Join us. Thank you for staying with us. We will take a short break now. When we return, we will speak about the People's Democratic Party and the fight for the soul of the party. Stay with us.