Your Highness, as paramount ruler of Onne, the host community of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Port Free Zone, what is your view on the significant changes and growth of the port?
From my experience of what our dwelling place and the port complex used to be years back and what it is now, I believe that Orlean Invest and its subsidiaries have been impacting positively on my people.
Can you give us an insight?
Yes, a large proportion of the complex was a thick swamp and forest, which is inhabitable. But many of the forests have been cleared and now being developed into modern estates and layouts by Orlean Invest. The firm's development drive is commendable though nothing can be perfect.
Any significant attention to the development of the community's physical structure?
Oh, yes. The impact is there physically within the community for every one to see. For instance, the company has been able to tar a 101/2 km internal roads, construction of several drainages, and other structures. The firm energised our transformers for us to remain connected to the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and provided street lights on our main internal road with solar system.
In the absence of job opportunities, do the companies have provisions for skill acquisition for the unemployed youths in the community? Truly, there are quite a large number of unemployed in my community. However, Orlean Invest and few other major key players in the Free Zone are doing their best by engaging some of the youths in skills acquisition programmes such as dress making (sewing), hair salon business, computer training, welding, forklift operations and a graduate training programme called NIIT for our unemployed graduates who could be considered for job offers after their training. The companies have done more than seven training programmes which they paid for and as well gave each beneficiaries about N25,000 as their supportive allowance.
Orlean Invest celebrated its 25th anniversary in Nigeria in October last year (2013); from your account of its efforts to carry the community along, how would you rate it generally?
In fairness to the company, it is committed to the well being of my people their socio-economic needs. I agree it is doing its best but cannot solve all problems at the same time. So its best is not enough.
What area is so critical that you would need the company's attention?
Any human development scheme that would uplift and improve the living standard of my people is critical and important to me. However, I must emphasise on employment. Youth unemployment is starring us in the face. So many unemployed youths are sitting in limbo waiting for employment opportunities to come their way.
Would you say their plight does not attract the sympathy of the companies or are they suffering sheer insensitivity of employers with available vacancies?
None of such insinuation; I differ in such opinion. My people, I mean the youths are educationally disadvantaged. So many of them have not made it up to the tertiary institutions after managing to scale through post primary school level with ordinary ('O' Level) certificate.
Should that be counted against them so much that there is no way to salvage the situation?
That is not what it implies here. Youths from the communities with 'O' level certificates are offered employment, but the jobs they do are menial jobs with small monthly take home packages (wages) so they often refuse to do such work. Secondly, most of the jobs in the Free Zone are technical in nature which demands professionals. Only those who are graduates are given worthwhile offers. Orlean Invest introduced the NIIT graduate training programme for the beneficiaries to properly fit into their arrears offered them to serve.
Who are the main targets benefitting from this scheme?
The scheme is particularly for the indigenes and extends to about 18 communities though Onne is the immediate and central host community. Unfortunately, the training arrangements always deplete our share.
The problem of the unemployed youths in your domain is worrisome; are you planning a way to liaise with the employers in the free zone?
I have been speaking with the management of companies there in that regard especially on the non-graduates plight. They are paid between N20,000 and N25,000 per month. To them that is too meager to cope with.
Do they expect to be on equal salary scale with graduates working there because they are indigenes from the host community?
I know that no employer will accede to that. My people simply don't want to work, so they peddle rumour that they are not employed. But I tell them that, you are not a graduate and yet you are given a small job to manage, with that you would progress. We are still on that at our community level. They are voluntarily unemployed because they reject jobs because of meager wages. PRODECO is the main employer of that group of people.
What about those who acquire training through the skill acquisition programme like computer and welding among others, are they being absolved by the Orlean Invest, Intels or PRODECO?
I have a problem there too because these people are trained but not given employment. And since they are not given job opportunities they go back to square one labour market. Our appeal to the companies is that after training these people create opportunities for them so that they would be useful to us, though you don't employ all of them.
Most host communities that enter memorandum of understanding with companies operating on their land are share holders in such companies, what is the case between the Onne host community and the companies operating in its area?
When I ascended this throne 15 year ago I discovered that none of my predecessors made any effort of entering into an MoU with the authorities or companies that came to operate in the free zone. The companies said they were not bound by any legal relationship, but they love to operate in the community because of their peaceful disposition.
You are the sitting paramount ruler and versed in legal technicalities to correct the wrong of the past, why have you not taken the issue up?
If we had MoU with them, we can enforce it through the court, but we don't have this. I handled Nchia-Eleme case with the Eleme Petro Chemical Company now called Indorama-Eleme Petro Chemical Company. I advised them on the need for an MoU with the company. It worked out for them and today they are enjoying dividends as shareholders. The Onne people are only relying on what the government told the core investors that they should do "something" for the host communities but that is not a law but a mere statement that is just working against us.
Not all companies in Onne fall under the free zone like the Former National Fertilizer Company of Nigeria (NAFCON) now called NOTORE, did it enter a common MoU with the host community?
Yes, we have done that with the company as well as with Delta Environmental and some others, but we did not enter such with Intels which is the major company in Onne. We cannot enforce MoU that we don't have.
Do the youths understand why the companies in the free zone are enjoying the MoU immunity covering them?
If we want to enforce MoU that we don't have the only language the youths understand is force, but we don't allow them. We tell them that for the fact that we don't have MoU to enforce by law does not authorize them to use violence.
From all indications, lack of sound education from the graduate level is working against your community. What is your effort to encourage those determined to go beyond their 'O' level school certificate?
The core investors are mindful of this need through their Corporate Social Responsibilities to the community. They offer our youths scholarships covering post primary and tertiary institutions. PRODECO, INTELS and ADAX companies among others come to mind. INTELS alone has given about 20 of our youths scholarship to pursue their education in various tertiary institutions while about 10 - 15 others came from other companies.
Do you see a brighter future for those who are ready to study for better living?
Yes I do, for such youths, beyond the sky is their limit. If the companies continue to assist in that direction and giving adequate empowerment, the serious ones will overtake the dullards or lazy ones who do not want to study for better qualification or work but want free money.
No comments:
Post a Comment