The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has berated President Muhammadu Buhari for ignoring the outcry by Nigerians not to sign the anti-people Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) as passed by the National Assembly, into law.
The party noted that the signing of the law, despite widespread public rejection, amounts to an endorsement of imposition and further confirms that Buhari and his All Progressives Congress (APC) had no iota of respect for the people as well as the tenets of democracy as a system of government.
In a statement on Monday by its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party said President Buhari had only authenticated he was not a listening leader and that the APC and its leaders were only out to trample on the will of Nigerians for their selfish interest.
The opposition party said in endorsing the bill, Buhari and the APC have again displayed disdain and insensitivity to the suffering of the people of the Niger Delta.
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It described such as the height of contempt to oil-producing communities, particularly in the face of the challenges which they face as a result of oil exploration.
The party argued that the president could have returned the bill to the National Assembly with a request that it should be made to address the demands of the oil producing communities, adding that the new law cannot guarantee the desired stability and development in the oil and gas sector as well as respite in the Niger Delta region.
According to the statement, “the Act as signed by President Buhari is a dangerous recipe for avoidable crisis in the sector.
“The PDP calls on President Buhari to salvage the situation by immediately forwarding an amendment bill to the National Assembly to reflect the true wishes and aspirations of every segment of our nation.”
While calling for calm across the country, particularly in the South-South geo-political zone, the PDP also charged lawmakers elected on its platform to be at alert for an urgent amendment to this law.
Meanwhile, the Senate has described the accent by President Muhammadu Buhari to the PIB as victory with the potential to bail Nigeria out of its economic predicament, and an act that will enable the country to make the most of the economic gains of the oil industry for the benefit of Nigerians.
While reacting on Monday, chairman, public affairs committee of the Senate, Surajudeen Basiru noted that efforts at reaching this stage had been a protracted affair as the bill, first initiated in 2003, had been subjected to a ping pong affair between the previous legislatures and the executives.
He expressed delight that the 9th National Assembly finally broke the jinx when it recently passed the bill after working dispassionately by putting the interest of the nation first over petty squabbles and other self-interests.
President Buhari had on September 2, 2020 forwarded a draft of the bill to both chambers of the National Assembly.
