President Buhari performs groundbreaking ceremony of Oil wells in Gombe
By Ben Ngwakwe, Gombe
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Tuesday performed the groundbreaking of Kolmani Integrated Development Project at Kolmani Oil Field, Pindiga area of Akko of Gombe State.
The Governors of Sokoto, Adamawa, Plateau, Bauchi, Yobe, Gombe, Borno, kebbi, Deputy Governors of Nassarawa, Jigawa also attended the occasion while the National Chairman of the APC Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Presidential Candidate of APC, Bola Tinubu with his running mate, Vice Presidential Senator kashima Shettima are in attendance.
Others are; Secretary to Government of the Federation; Mr Boss Mustapha, former Secretary to Federal Government, Amb. Gana Kingibe, Ministers, Senators, Members of the House of Representatives, traditional rulers, members of States Houses of Assemblies, Management of NNPC led by GMD Mele Kayari, and other dignitaries attended.
Our Correspondent reports that the Oil well would produce 50,000 barrel per day while in 2030 the whole country would produce three million barrel per day but the controversial surrounding the location of Kolmani Oil Field that was allegedly claimed by the two states Bauchi and Gombe started some decades ago.
The exploration started in old Bauchi State when Gombe State was under the Bauchi State Government.
Incidentally, when Gombe State was created in 1996, the Oid Field by divine providence, the area the field was discovered belonged now to Pindiga in Akko Local Government Area of Gombe State.
Trouble started when Bauchi State calmed wholly and singularly the ownership of the area under the grounds that it was their resources that was used to start the exploration while the land where the oil wells was discovered is presently situated in Gombe State.
However, Stakeholders believes that the matter was compounded then because the Group Managing Director, Late Maikanti Baru, was an indigene of Bauchi State and used his position to influence that the project should be sited and owned by Bauchi State.
The misunderstanding reached the climax that the President Muhammadu Buhari, invited the Gombe State Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya and Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed and officials of NNPC in London to settle the matter before the contentious issues was amicably settled, according to multiple sources, leading to the official ground breaking ceremony on Tuesday.
Also, the challenges likely to face the two states are who would be regarded and recognised as the Oil producing state to access the 13 percent derivation fund monthly given to Oil Producing states by Federation.
Our Correspondent gathered that three oil wells are situated in Gombe State, despite the misgivings, the Oil wells are believed to browned by Gombe State Government while Bauchi State Government under Senator Bala Mohammed has helping hands as a result of birthing the state that was hitherto in Bauchi State.
Speaking, the GMD, Mele Kolo Kiyari, disclosed that the ceremony was a collaboration between the two states and asked the states involved in the project to protect their staff during and after the event.
The dominant tribes are Fulani and Kanuri while they are specialised in producing Bambra nut, watermelon, Sorghum, and Millet.
