22 April 2014, Lagos – The management of Midwestern Oil and Gas has denied the reports making the rounds that the operations of the company were recently disrupted by protesting youths in Ozoro, Delta State.
In a statement signed by the company’s secretary, Mr. Chris Omoru, the company maintained that at no time were the operations of the company either on the field or in the office disrupted. He, however, admitted that there was an “unguarded and needless” protest by some youths in the area who were merely asking for patronage by way of contracts and employment opportunities.
The statement noted that “given our very cordial community relationship and high-profile Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) record, for which we have received several awards, we make sure that we maintain very cordial relationship with our host communities. “The selected youths under the aegis of Isoko Indigenous Synergy Contractors, who came to make demand were actually not from our operational communities, but even then, we had appropriately complied with our obligations and even the demands of the true representatives of the community through employments slots and award of appropriate contracts that have been given to various community leaders, so the need to stage a protest therefore does not arise,” Omoru said.
The statement explained further that a meeting between the protesting youths and the management of the company as well as security agencies has been held and the youths who pledged to maintain peace in the area, have been directed to the mutually-appointed leaders of the communities. “For the avoidance of doubt, at no point in time was our operation disrupted, just as we continue to maintain the cordial relationship between us and our host communities, it said.”
– This Day
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