CSR: ijaw youth council to begin profile of oil firms operating in western delta

The leadership of the Western Zone of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) on Tuesday vowed to begin scrutinizing oil companies operating in the zone on their corporate social responsibilities and operations.   Speaking to journalists in Benin City, the newly elected secretary of the zone comprising Edo, Delta and Ondo States, Omaghomi Olu-Derimon alleged that what many of the oil companies declare on paper anf what they do is different from what is ground in the various oil producing communities just as he frowned at the continued running of Niger Delta Development of Commission (NDDC) and Amnesty Programme by interim leadership.   He said: “It is part of our mandate to scrutinize the operations of the oil companies on their corporate social responsibility to their immediate environment and how they have imparted on their communities; we are going to be evaluating their operations and we are going to do that as a pressure group to promote the Ijaw people and that is one of our mandate.”
Olu-Derimon also added, “It is good that the oil companies get this information so that when we are coming they will understand and it will not be strange to them because most times, they come to the media to say they have done this and that for the community but what is in the papers are different from what is on the ground.   “One of our mandates is to carry out this scrutiny of IOCs operating in Ijaw communities in the three states under our jurisdiction. IYC is ready partner with the government of the day for the development of Ijaw land.”    On the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and other intervention agencies, Olu-Derimon said the appointment of a substantive board for the NDDC is long overdue, adding that the body does not want to make any fight both hopeful that President Muhammadu Bihari will do the needful.
“We are not giving any ultimatum for now but for the good of the Niger Delta people, the president should give us a substantive board but because in recent time, it is appalling that anything that has to do with the Niger Delta has been on interim leadership.
“The presidential amnesty program is being headed by an interim administrator, NDDC is the same thing for crying out loud and we cannot continue in that light. He should appoint a substantive board”, the IYC zonal secretary declared.