Former President Olusegun Obasanjo and elder statesman Pa Edwin Clark have been in the news recently over oil in the Niger Delta and who is the rightful owner....CONTINUE READING
The former President who governed Nigeria for 8 years told Edwin Clark that the oil in the Niger Delta belongs to Nigeria and not the Niger Delta.
Pa Edwin Clark who is a respected leader in the Niger Delta described OBJ as someone who doesn’t like the oil-rich Niger Delta. TAP HERE TO READ FULL ARTICLES
After I read the report on This Day newspaper on the verbal attack between Obasanjo and Clark, I was forced to ask if the former President was right to have said that the oil from the Niger Delta belongs to Nigeria and not the Niger Delta.
What does the constitution of Nigeria say about mineral resources?
The 1999 constitution as amended made it clear that all mineral resources in Nigeria belong to the exclusive list. This simply means that the oil in the Niger Delta belongs to Federal Government. Obasanjo was right with his statement.
Edwin Clark understands this but his anger is that the ordinary people in the Niger Delta don’t benefit from the resources which is in their land.
Many people will disagree with Clark because the federal government has done a lot to ensure that the oil-rich Niger Delta benefits from oil money.
For example, the amnesty program, 13 percent derivative, and the establishment of NDDC are all measures taken by the Nigerian government to better the lives of people in the Niger Delta.
The gold in Zamfara
Many people have asked why the gold in Zamfara is not on the exclusive list. This is one of the reasons Edwin Clark thinks that the country is not fair to the people of Niger Delta.
Gold is a major commodity globally and its mining takes place in Zamfara. Clark believes that Obasanjo should have also stated that the gold in Zamfara belongs to Nigeria and not Zamfara.
Could it be that the government of President Buhari is working hard to ensure that gold in Zamfara is also included in the exclusive list?
Many Nigerians wait to hear when the Federal Government will formally announce that the Nigerian Government is now in charge of gold in Zamfara.
So that all the money made from it will go to the federation account just like the money made from oil.
