Minna – The Niger Government has called on the National Assembly to include the host communities of the three Hydro Electric Dams in the state in the Petroleum Industry Bill before the legislature.
This is contained in a statement issued by the state Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Jonathan Vatsa, on Sunday in Minna.
Vatsa urged the Federal Government to urgently look into the plight of the host communities of the three Hydro dams.
“Since there is a bill to cater for the petroleum producing host communities it is only fair that the opportunity is used to consider the electricity producing host communities who have been suffering in silence over the years,” he said.
The commissioner pointed out that the hydro dams have serious environmental impact on the host communities, noting that the bill will take care of their interest.
According to him, the bill will be a great relief to the state government which has been meeting the demands of these host communities with little resources.
“The state government takes seriously the suffering of the people from every part of the state. Unfortunately, the suffering by the electricity producing host communities is long left unattended to.
“We urge all our representatives in the National Assembly to ensure that they make this a reality as they also ensure the take off of the Hydro Power Producing Area Development Commission,” he urged. (NAN)