Hundreds of protesters under the banner of the Energy Reforms Advocates of Nigeria (ERAN) on Saturday stormed the streets of Abuja, kicking against the proposed National Commission for the Decommissioning of Oil and Gas Installations (NC-DOGI).
The group described the bill as a “money-guzzling contraption” and “a dagger aimed at the heart of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA),” warned lawmakers to shelve it immediately in the national interest.
Addressing a press conference, Comrade Abba Henry, Executive Director of ERAN, said the new commission was needless and wasteful since the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) already have full legal and technical powers to handle decommissioning operations.
“Nigeria is broke. Our debt is choking us. Yet some senators want to birth a brand-new commission that will swallow billions just to watch old pipes rust,” Abba said. “Why create a third referee when the field already has two?”
The activists warned that creating NC-DOGI would fuel duplication, investor flight, and fresh channels for corruption.
“One agency will approve, another will supervise, and the third will fight over who collects the kickback. Investors hate chaos—they’ll take their dollars to Ghana,” Abba cautioned.
He noted that the PIA, signed into law only four years ago after two decades of deliberation, was still stabilising and should not be disrupted.
“The ink is still wet. Don’t tear the book to add a new chapter nobody asked for,” he said.
Unveiling a five-word slogan “KILL THIS BILL” ERAN vowed to mobilise nationwide petitions, host community town halls from Eket to Yenagoa, and pursue legal action if the bill proceeds.
“We will name and shame every senator who votes for this wasteful idea. History will record their greed,” the group vowed.
Abba issued a direct appeal to the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives, urging them to halt the bill’s progress immediately.
“Do not keep it alive. Do not smuggle it. Do not rename it. Bury it today so Nigeria can breathe tomorrow,” he said.
