Protest: Bayelsa govt pledges to connect Shell’s host community for national grid

Nathan Tamarapreye, Yenagoa

The Bayelsa State Government has waded into the crisis between Shell Petroleum Development (SPDC) and Otuasega community over failed promise by the oil firm to provide electricity by December 14, 2021.

Otuasega community in Ogbia Local Government Area in Bayelsa had on December 21, 2021, in a protest shut down activities at SPDC’s facilities in the area for delays in providing power to them.

The government on Monday, subsequently directed the Managing Director of the State Electricity Company, Mr Olice Kemenanabo, to immediately connect Otuasega community to the national grid.

Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, Deputy Governor of Bayelsa gave the directive during an emergency meeting with community leaders of Otuasega and representatives of SPDC at his office in Government House, Yenagoa.

Ewhrudjakpo, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Mr Doubara Atasi, explained that the decision to hook up Otuasega to the national grid had become inevitable following the failure of SPDC to meet the target date.

It would be recalled that the oil company had set Dec. 14, 2021as a target to commence power supply from the SPDC Kolo Creek Oil and Gas Manifold to cluster communities in the area.

The Deputy Governor decried the continued blackout in Otuasega community and its environs.

He attributed SPDC’s failure to the inability of the government, the SPDC, and the people of Otuasega to meet regularly and follow up the resolutions reached at the September 24, 2021, tripartite meeting.

He said the community would enjoy power supply from the National Grid as a temporary measure, while efforts would be intensified to power the community from the SPDC manifold in the first quarter of 2022.

According to Ewhrudjakpo, meetings would be regularly held with SPDC until the power supply issue in the area was laid to rest, noting that he was not happy that the project could not be delivered as earlier agreed.

He appealed to the people of Otuasega to be patient and remain law-abiding to enable the government to take practical steps towards ending the protracted blackout in their community.

Speaking earlier on behalf of the Otuasega Community, the CDC Chairman, Mr Raniyar Marcus, expressed disappointment with the SPDC for reneging on its promise to deliver the job by the December 14, 2021 deadline.

Marcus noted that the December 21 non-violent protest that led to the shutting down of the SPDC manifold was staged by the community to register their anger, stressing that SPDC had always taken the Otuasega people for granted.

In his presentation, the Community Relations Manager, SPDC (East), Mr Evans Krukrubo, explained that the company was not happy that the power project was not delivered according to on schedule.

Krukrubo, however, thanked the Otuasega community for their maturity, patience and understanding so far, and assured them that the SPDC was committed to working with the state government to deliver on the project by the end of February 2022.