Relocate your headquarters to areas of operation, PHCCIMA President tells oil companies

The Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines, & Agriculture (PHCCIMA) has added its voice to the call by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo for multi-national Oil Companies to relocate their headquarters to their areas of operations.

Speaking in Port Harcourt yesterday, the President of PHCCIMA,Dr. Emi Membere-Otaji, said that such relocation would be a major step in quelling the under development, poverty, and the associated social vices of militancy and insecurity in the areas.

The PHCCIMA President said that the failure of oil companies to relocate to their areas of operations would be tantamount to playing the ostrich game.

He cited war-torn countries like Libya and Iraq where, he said, the management of international oil companies like, Shell, Chevron, Total, and others resided and still produced oil instead of running to safe havens.

He said that the fastest way of curbing the insecurity in the oil producing Niger Delta was for those oil companies’ management to take the bull by the horn to work and reside in their areas of operations.

“That way they will lobby and support the government to show strong political will in not only churning out good policies, but in developing the area especially in infrastructure, education, health, entrepreneurial skills and maintaining security. Then there will be increased economic activities and the youths will be gainfully engaged instead of doing unlawful and illegal things.

“Also, because most of the key oil producing states of the country are coastal states, with moribund seaports, re-awaking the Eastern ports in Port Harcourt, Warri, Sapele and Calabar, will not only activate massive economic activities in the South-South and South-Eastern ports of the country through ports and shipping services but will also put most of the youths in gainful employment and not criminality.

“Today, the Eastern ports barely function because of obsolete infrastructure and undredged channels. Most people in the area import and export their goods through the Western ports of Lagos. When we imagine that Singapore, without any natural resources but just a shipping hub is a first world country and that Port Harcourt founded in 1912 by the then colonial government as a port city and economic Mecca for all, at the time, then one can add up and realize the socio-economic importance of revival of the Eastern ports as panacea to the nation’s current socio-economic dilemma,” he stated.

According to him, it was time for government to walk the talk to regain the economies of the oil producing area states.