Kolmani Oilfield: Host Community Faults FG Election-Season Promises

The Pali Development Association, representing the host community of the Kolmani oilfield in Bauchi State, has urged the Federal Government to take concrete steps towards restarting exploration activities at the site.

The association also cautioned the government against turning the long-delayed oil exploration project into a political campaign issue ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Its chairman, Hashim Pali, spoke on Tuesday while reacting to a verification visit to the oilfield by the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission.

Pali said the people of Bauchi State and the North-East would welcome any genuine effort to resume and complete exploration at Kolmani, but insisted that the government must demonstrate its commitment through tangible action rather than statements and official visits.

He recalled that President Bola Tinubu made commitments regarding the continuation of the Kolmani project during his 2023 presidential campaign in Gombe State.

According to Pali, the host community expected the administration to sustain the project after assuming office. Instead, he said, exploration activities eventually stopped and equipment and machinery were removed from the site.

He questioned why the project was allowed to remain inactive for more than three years before the government began expressing renewed interest in remobilising it.

Pali said the latest assurances had raised concerns because they coincided with another election cycle.

He argued that residents of Bauchi and the wider North-East should not be treated merely as an electoral audience, insisting that the region had previously received promises about the project.

The association chairman said Kolmani should be regarded as a strategic economic project rather than an electoral slogan.

He highlighted its potential to create employment, improve infrastructure and energy supply, increase government revenue and stimulate economic development across Bauchi, Gombe, the North-East and Nigeria generally.

Pali therefore called on Tinubu and the Federal Government to move beyond verification exercises and public statements by immediately remobilising contractors and equipment to the site.

He also demanded sustained funding and transparent timelines for the resumption and completion of exploration activities.

The host community maintained that genuine progress at Kolmani would demonstrate that the government’s commitments extend beyond election periods and translate into tangible economic opportunities for the people.