The newly appointed Executive Secretaries of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) have been urged to overhaul Nigeria’s oil sector divestment policies.
The advice was given by the Team Lead of Miideekor Environmental Development Initiative (MEDI), Celestine AkpoBari, in a statement, who warned that the practices were deepening environmental injustice in oil-producing communities.
Mr AkpoBari stressed that divestment must not serve as an escape route for oil companies to evade environmental responsibility, calling on the new leadership of NMDPRA and NUPRC to strengthen enforcement of clean-up obligations, environmental safeguards and community protections.
He said divestments over time have enabled international oil companies to exit onshore and shallow-water assets without adequate remediation of legacy pollution.
He claimed that host communities in the Niger Delta have been left with polluted land and waterways, damaged livelihoods and worsening health conditions as a result of poorly regulated divestment processes.
He said, “As an organisation dedicated to protecting the environment and livelihoods of Niger Delta communities devastated by decades of oil pollution, MEDI calls on the incoming chief executives to immediately review and reverse all divestment policies and orders implemented under the previous leadership.
“These policies have facilitated the exit of international oil companies from onshore assets without adequate remediation of legacy pollution, leaving host communities burdened with contaminated lands, waterways, and health crises.
“Robust enforcement of environmental safeguards must be prioritised to ensure that divestments do not perpetuate injustice or evade accountability,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr AkpoBari welcomed the leadership changes at the two regulatory agencies, describing them as an opportunity to restore transparency, accountability and public trust in the governance of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.
According to him, the transition in leadership comes at a critical moment when Nigeria’s oil sector is grappling with allegations of regulatory failures, weak oversight and policies that undermine national interest and environmental protection.
He praised Aliko Dangote for what he described as his courageous exposure of alleged corruption and regulatory capture within petroleum regulatory agencies.
According to him, Mr Dangote’s public allegations of sabotage, conflicting interests and preferential treatment for imported substandard petroleum products brought renewed attention to systemic challenges that weaken local refining and threaten Nigeria’s economic sovereignty.
SOURCE: thesun
