The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Gulu, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Acholi Paramount Chief, Rwot David Onen Acana II has challenged the government to ensure transparency and equitable sharing of revenues from oil and gas.
Rwot Acana, who was the chief guest at the oil and gas symposium organized by the Ministry of Energy at Churchill Courts Hotel in Gulu City on 16th April 2024 challenged the government not to stampede the population but to demonstrate transparency to ensure equitable benefits of oil to the country.
Part of the oil fields especially under TotalEnergies’ Tilenga project are located are Nwoya district which is part of Acholi.
Cultural and political leaders from Acholi say they have equally benefited from the development stages of the oil and gas infrastructure like their counterparts in Bunyoro Kitara.
Between 2013 and 2014, former Leader of the Opposition and a politician from Agago, Prof. Maurice Ogenga Latigo led a team of researchers under the Acholi Technical Working Committee on Oil and Gas whose key observations and recommendations on oil and gas were contained in a memorandum to President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni for consideration.
At the time, the Committee proposed that Tilenga’s Central Processing Facility (CPF) should be located in Nwoya to process crude from Acholi.
The Committee also observed that Uganda’s National Oil and Gas Policy did not adequately reflect oil and gas discoveries, and defined opportunities.
Professor Latigo’s team also proposed a “Trans-North Crude Oil Export Pipeline” to Lamu Town in Kenya as opposed to the East African Crude Oil Pipeline- EACOP to Tanzania. But both the pipeline and the Central Processing facility are based in Hoima. The EACOP pipeline will not also traverse any of the districts in Acholi.
Professor Latigo notes that with huge oil discoveries in Acholi, it has not benefited from the oil roads like the districts in Bunyoro. He said other than pump heads in oil fields, no key road infrastructure or oil and gas infrastructure are in the Acholi.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development at to Eng. Irene Pauline Bateebe did not directly speak to the concerns raised by the the leaders from Acholi.
Bateebe explained that 1.4 billion barrels of the oil are technically recoverable at current conditions while the 1.0 billion barrels are reserves (recoverable) and 0.4 billion barrels are contingent resources. Uganda has already started developing an oil refinery plant at Kabaale Parish, Buseruka sub-county, Bugahya County in Hoima District to process 60,000 barrels per day of oil produced in the country.
A 29 Sq Km of land has been acquired and secured from the public to establish an industrial park to host Uganda’s 2nd International Airport, Crude Oil Export Hub, as well as, polymer, fertilizer, mixed industries, aggro-processors, and warehousing logistics, among others.
***
URN
