Mkpoikana Udoma 01 March 2017, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – Four host communities in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area in Rivers State have entered into a Global Memorandum of Understanding, GMoU, with the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, SPDC.
The communities – Rumuibekwe, Mgbesilaru, Rumurianwo and Rumujimenwu, which are hosts to the SPDC Residential Area in Port Harcourt, signed the N1 billion Shell Residential Agreement and a GMoU which is to last for a period of five years.
Rivers State Commissioner for Community and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr. John Bazia, at the signing of the GMoU, also inaugurated the cluster development board for members of the communities to manage the N1 billion fund that would accrue to the communities.
Bazia expressed hope that the GMoU would enhance cordial relationship between the host communities and the company.
He said, “As a government we have come in with great ideas to ensure peace and harmony between companies and their host communities; before now it is said that the Niger Delta people are restive, forgetting that in a family, people disagree but what is important is that people disagree to agree.
“So, what we are saying is that communities should no longer take laws into their own hands by disrupting activities of companies in their locality, all they need do is to write a petition to the Ministry and complain about the company, then we will invite the company and the community to resolve the issue amicably,” Bazia said.
Speaking on behalf of the four cluster communities, the Paramount Ruler of Oha-Okporo-Okwurushi Kingdom and member of the cluster development board for the GMoU, Eze Morgan Amadi, commended the state government for the initiative, saying the communities were ready to work with Shell for the development of the area.
Amadi also advised members of the board to be diligent in their service to ensure the benefits accruable to the communities from the GMoU are properly executed.