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Akwa-lbom
and Exxon Mobil relocation
By
Utibe Uko
E-mail:
[email protected]
What is wrong with a corporate body's decision to move
its operations and administration from a locality to another locality? A whole lot.
With such movement comes loss of revenue to the local government from which the
organisation is moving from. The local entrepreneurs lose patronage and revenue
accruing directly from the organisation, it workforce and contractors and other
people who may be linked to the organisation in one way or the other. Landlords
in the area suffer loss of revenue as company staff move out of the area. The hospitality
businesses in the area suffer a slump in patronage or lose out completely. The
incumbent host community ceases to be a major beneficiary of the company's
corporate social responsibility activities. With the abyss mal-performance of
government in the provision of social infrastructure in Nigeria, a lot of
communities have become dependent on multinationals and individuals to provide
social amenities like portable water, electricity, access roads and the like.
Recently ExxonMobil announced that it is moving its operations from Eket
in Akwa-Ibom state to Onnein Rivers state. The announcement and subsequent
relocation of ExxonMobil operations from the Qua-Iboe Terminal to Onne caused a
violent riot by youths in the Eket area, host community to ExxonMobil in
Akwa-lbom. The dismay of theEket community is understandable for the above
stated reasons. Without ExxonMobil in the area, Eket Town and its environs will
scarcely be worth a visit by the huge number of foreigners and Nigerians from
other parts of the country. Without ExxonMobil, generations of Akwa-lbom youths
will not be privileged to have any trade skills. The ExxonMobil Technical
School in Eket has produced many quality grade technicians who have gone on to
make their mark outside ExxonMobil, increasing Nigeria's technical manpower.
ExxonMobil's contribution to education, to the construction and upgrade of
roads just to mention a few in Akwa-Ibom state cannot be understated.
In the light of these, the youths who must have seen the movement of the
petroleum multinational as taking the cake from their mouth were well within
bounds to protest there location to Onne. After all, Rivers state has more than
its fair share ofmultinationals operating there. But was violence the best form
of protest, did the Speaker of the Akwa-Ibom state House of Assembly have to
use foul languageagainst ExxonMobil as a means of expressing his worry over the
company's relocation? No! These two unsavoury incidents need not have been.
I'm sad that ExxonMobilis leaving Akwa-lbom state, really sad because
its going to Rivers state meansthat Akwa-Ibomites cease to
"indigenes" of ExxonMobil and my brethrenin Rivers state will now be
ExxonMobil "indigenes" and as such none of my relations and friends
be given priority status when it comes to employment in ExxonMobil. How sad.
Well, since ExxonMobilis going, what is the way forward for Akwa-lbom
state after the exit of our "Father Christmas". Unlike my fellow
youths and Honourable members in the State legislature, I don't think we have
lost out completely with the exit of ExxonMobil from Akwa-lbom. I'm of the
opinion that we may yet turn the exit of ExxonMobil into a huge advantage, if
we think properly, (common sense is never common.
Let
me digress a bit, a little history lesson. Subic Naval base, does the name ring
a bell? Unless you are conversant with South-east Asia the name will not ring a
bell. Subic Naval base is a former United States Navy base located in the
Philippines. Several years ago, the Americans moved out of Subic Naval base
after their rent expired. Subic, when operational was a huge military complex.
It was a major deployment and replenishment point for United States armed
forces in Asia. As the American lease on the base was nearing expiration, the
Pilipino government spoke of plans to turn Subic into a model satellite town
utilizing the infrastructure left behinds by the Americans. Sadly it was all
talk and little action, todaySubic has more lizards, cockroaches, rats, birds,
snakes and weeds as occupants than humans.
ExxonMobil is relocatingto Onne leaving behind at least a huge housing
estate; a heli-pad and an airstrip (Mind you I said, at least). I have it on
good authority that the Akwa-Ibom state government plans to turn the state into
a tourist haven ostensibly to complement the efforts of its neighbour, Cross
Rivers state. The Akwa-lbom state government also has plans to build an
airport. Which I think is the most hare-brained idea in the world. Has the
traffic at the Calaba rInternational airport become overwhelming? Back to the
ExxonMobil issue.
In the light of these, I ask does the Obong Victor Attah administration
in Akwa-lbom state have any plan(s) to utilize and maintain the physical
structures that will be left behind by ExxonMobil's relocation (Remember Subic
Naval base). Rather than waste resources building an oversized airport which
will cater to an infinite number of customers when compared to the resources
put into it. Wouldn't it be wiser and more cost effective to utilize the
ExxonMobil heli-pad and airstripat Eket? Eket by the way is about an hour's
drive from Uyo the state capital(About the same distance from Abuja
International Airport to the Abuja city centre). With the relocation of
ExonnMobil comes the relocation of its staff and lots of empty houses (Do I
have to say the obvious?). I've just touched two issues, I'm sure, I hope my
governor and his team can think of more.
I'm not laying it into my state governor, Obong Victor Attah, but I
think if his brother governor, Donald Duke of Cross-Rivers state reads this
piece he will be licking his lips wishing such an opportunity would fall into
his hands (that is if he has not thought of it already).
The Philipino's may have done nothing about the U.S Navy base at Subic
but Akwa-lbom can do something very positive about ExxonMobil's relocation. I
believe Akwa-lbom state rather than sit down and mourn the relocation of
ExxonMobil to Onne can use there location to improve the standard of living for
its people and our leaders will take their place in history.
Let's stop moaning, give ExxonMobil a warm handshake, give them a hot
serving of pounded yam or fufu andafang or edikan-ikong soup, thank the
multinational for a job well done over the years, tell them our doors are open
to them 24/7/4/30/366 (24 hours, 7 days a week, four weeks a month, 30 days a
month and 366 days a year), that they can come back any time and then get
cracking at improving our lot in Akwa-lbom state.
By the way dearest Governor (Obong) Victor Attah, I believe this can be
Q.E.D (Quite Easily Done) before 2007 so no excuses please. All hands on deck!
Uko wrote in from Lagos
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