The Bayelsa West Youth Congress has debunked the claim by one Wisdom Ikuli that Senator Seriake Dickson has taken over Atala Marginal Fields.
According to a statement signed by Bayelsa West Youth Congress Chairman Ebide Brown and Spokesman, Moses Hitler, they urged Bayelsans to completely disregard and discard the statement by Wisdom Ikuli and his Group as it is completely false and does not make any sense at all.
Excerpt is the full text of the press release
Our attention has been drawn to the latest, mindless vituperations and propaganda continually waged by one mentally unstable Wisdom Ikuli who we know is used by some people in his local government and senatorial district, currently and serving to propagate outright falsehoods and incite people of Bayelsa against Former Governor Dickson as a result of his intimidating achievements in office and his profile in Bayelsa and beyond, Achievements that continue to haunt them for their own failures. This mindless propaganda began as a prelude to the 2019 Gubernatorial elections. While one can excuse the behavior then as campaign gimmicks, it is surprising that long after the elections, this propaganda has continued.
The latest propaganda relates to the Atala Marginal Fields (OML 46) which was acquired by the Bayelsa State Government, perfected by the administration of then-Governor Goodluck Jonathan, spearheaded by Dickson when he was Attorney General
However, in 2012, there were discoveries that Chief Timipre Sylva while he was Governor had brought in an operator and ceded major stakes to them. So Governor Dickson inaugurated a board chaired by one of Ikuli’s Paymasters, AJ Turner to reorganize the company. This board renegotiated the deal that Sylva had ceded and increased the stake of Bayelsa State in the company. It was under Governor Dickson’s administration that the company struck first oil but could not proceed further even after several meetings and concessions by the state.
Concerning the ownership of Atala Marginal Fields, the statement by the so-called group headed by Ikuli should be completely disregarded and discarded, the statement is completely false and does not make any sense at all.
The Former Governor of Bayelsa and now Senator Henry Seriake Dickson is not a known businessman and does not know of any oil company or have any interest in such company. As a Senator from Bayelsa and a champion of the Ijaw struggle, he is naturally opposed to the revocation of that license.
The statement by Ikuli is an attempt to whitewash the terrible wrong that Timipre Sylva, the Minister of State for Petroleum has done to the people of Bayelsa and Niger Delta by using the DPR, an agency under his ministry to revoke several oil field licenses including the one owned by his own Bayelsa state, the Atala Marginal fields. No other Minister of Petroleum has done this except Sylva because his sole purpose is to take the Atala Marginal oil field for himself in addition to others which he has given to himself and his northern cronies and masters.
Senator Henry Seriake Dickson is currently a Senator representing Bayelsa West at the Senate, he is not a Governor, he is not the Petroleum Minister, he is not the head of DPR or even a member of any petroleum committee in the Senate, how can he have the power to take over the Atala Marginal Field?
Timipre Sylva is the one currently giving out oil licenses to several people without any Bayelsan as a beneficiary and is using DPR to carry out such operations. The DPR is controlled by Timipre Sylva and not controlled by Senator Dickson. It is highly ridiculous to suggest that Senator Dickson has the power to take over an Oil field.
The persons who are responsible and accountable for the current status of the oil fields are the Minister, Timipre Sylva who has revoked the license through DPR, and the current Governor of Bayelsa state, Senator Douye Diri who is to protect the state’s interest and not Senator Dickson.
Bayelsans from the Brass Senatorial district past and present who were in a position to award billions in contracts to empower Bayelsans did not do so and everybody knows who they are.
Timipre Sylva who was there and who is there now, and is in a position to issue oil licenses to Bayelsans and Niger Deltans have not done so but is rather favoring his paymasters. If Senator Dickson has ever applied for an oil license under Sylva, he should come out and say it and if Senator Dickson does apply for an oil license, will Sylva give him? Does the minister of petroleum now take instructions from a senator to carry out his duties? If there is a letter Senator Dickson wrote to DPR, where is the letter?
Those who have impoverished Bayelsa people deprived their ownership of oil wells, refused to develop Bayelsa and the Ijaw nation, we know them. We also know those who deprived Bayelsa State of the ownership of OML 28 which is the biggest oil bloc in Nigeria. They left the state and gave it to Aiteo. This was done by Former President Jonathan, one of the paymasters of Ikuli.
It is Ikuli’s paymasters who should explain the status of Atala Marginal Oil fields. It is Ikuli’s paymaster Jonathan who should explain how many Niger Deltans and Bayelsans he gave Oil licenses or empowerment to when he was President when he had everything and had a Petroleum Minister from Bayelsa. How many Ogbia people did Jonathan empower when he was President of Nigeria?
This outright blackmail and propaganda against Senator Dickson is pointless and should stop now.
The achievements of former Governor Dickson which will continue to stand the test of time are there in Bayelsa in all sectors for all to see and use. Several roads and several bridges, the schools, hospitals, and tertiary institutions, the state secretariates, the best Governor’s office in the country, the golf course, the Dappa Biriye conference center, the ecumenical Centre, the Oxbow Lake Pavilion, and many other legacy projects especially the Bayelsa International airport which is now being used by Ikuli’s paymasters that failed to do it when they had the power to do so. Senator Dickson as Governor undertook these projects in an economic recession and even projects that were the responsibilities of the federal government.
This continuous spreading of falsehood is because they are scared of their failures, they are scared of the people’s appreciation of Senator Dickson’s efforts as Governor. Ikuli should tell his paymasters that it is not too late for them to work as hard as Senator Dickson for the betterment of our people.
This mindless propaganda should be disregarded and discarded and in response to this propagation of falsehood, We will soon point out the failures of Ikuli’s paymasters and how they have failed to improve the plight of Ijaw people in their past and current assignments. Our silence and patience have been taken for granted for too long.
