Presidency yet to allocate oil blocs – Kachikwu

The Federal Government has said that it is yet to grant licence for any oil bloc in the country.
It has also said that the allocation of the oil blocks would follow due process when it would be done.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Dr Ibe Kachukwu made this known yesterday in Uyo during a town hall meeting organised by the Federal Ministry of Information for states in the South South zone to appraise the performance of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
Kachukwu who was reacting to complaints that the zone has been marginalised in the allocation of blocs however assured that merit and fairness would be the prime consideration when the licence would be given.
“In terms of allocation of all bloc to South-South indigenes, since we came into position, the government has not allocated any bloc. The president has not put any emphasis into it, at all. He said he has to correct the mess before that is done.
“Since the day I resume, this President has never called me to give me the name of anybody, any Nigerian, north, south, east or west, and saying to me, you need to do some favours.
“On the contrary, his emphasis is that there should be no favour, take the right decisions, be able to defend your decisions and if you are not, you do wrong you should be held accountable to it. And that is a major change and that speaks for me the volume that I need.
“So, on the issue of oil bloc, when the time comes, it will follow very due process. I am one of those who believe that there is a need for us to see how the South-South corridor will benefit from it, that is part of giving back, that is what is going to bring the final solution to this area.” The Minister explained.
He called for restraint from agitators in the region as violence and destruction of government facilities would not bring solution to their demands.
“There is there is no theatre in the world where conflict has been resolved through battle. It doesn’t matter who is right and who is wrong. I have two main objectives in this portfolio and one is to present production, generate revenue because if we don’t, all the things we are talking about here are just a joke.
“ And I believe that massively bombing a territory is not going to catapilate solutions, never works, because at the end of the day, you are going to live with the effect of that destruction”, he said. – Nigerian Pilot.