The National Chairman of Host Communities of Nigeria producing oil and gas (HOSTCOM), Dr Benjamin Style Tamaranebi has thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing the son of Niger Delta Timipre Sylva as the Minister of State for Petroleum.

He also congratulated him for also appointing Senator Godswill Akpabio as the Minister for Niger Delta Affairs even as he immensely thanked him for approving N98 billion gas flare penalty fund.

Speaking at the weekend in Yenagoa during the inauguration of the Bayelsa State chapter of HOSTCOM, Dr Style also advised all the HOSTOM members to vote for that candidate that will establish BASOPADEC as the state governorship election approaches.

Maintaining that HOSCOM has hundreds of thousands of members, he, however, condemned in it’s entirely the non-establishment of BASODEC since the birthing of HOSTCOM pointing out other oil producing states have established their own commissions.

The National Chairman said: “We are indebted to President Muhammadu Buhari for aligning himself to the aspirations and yearnings of the Niger Delta people specifically for the approval and release of N98 billion gas flare fund that has been long awaited to host communities.

“It is a laudable gesture and we are now asking for the 13% derivation funds to be given directly to host communities so that we can we can feel it because it is hanging in the hands of the governors. That is why we are telling the federal and the state governments that the 13% derivation funds should be give us so that we can use it to develop our communities.

“This is a clarion call to our communities not to waste their votes but to identify with candidate who will listen to their clarion call not candidate who will turn them to beggars after voting for him.”

He advised the oil companies operating in the region to identify with the host communities so that pipeline vandalism, crude oil theft and other social vices will not be there; adding that all those things were happening in the host communities because oil companies were not involving the entire host communities in their dealings. (Saturday Telegraph)

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