…Harps On MoU
As International Breweries celebrated 50 years anniversary over the weekend, the paramount ruler of Oginigba kingdom HRH King G. B. Odum JP praised the multinational company for its contribution to the development of Oginigba, adding that International Breweries single handedly built an ultramodern health center in Oginigba couple with considerable number of persons employed.
Meanwhile, the paramount ruler called on the company to look into some areas which they are not doing well, especially having concrete Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, pointing out that nobody in his community is a shareholder to the company also no one is a member of Board of Directors, not even the king.
“In other states where the company is situated their kings are members of Board of Directors and quite a number of them are shareholders. This should be looked into by the company, because Rivers where most of the multinationals derived majority of their resources from is grossly cheated.”
King Odum further noted that on several occasions the amiable governor of Rivers State has seriously frowned at most multinational companies operating in Rivers State for not keeping up to the terms of their Social Corporate Responsibility to their host communities and also the inability to have concrete Memorandum of Understanding, MoU
“Apart from International Breweries I have also confronted Dowell Slumberger and other multinational companies in Oginigba on the need of having MoU for holistic human and infrastructural development of Oginigba and Rivers at large.”
“This should be a wakeup call to host communities in Rivers State, human right organizations and the commissioner of Chieftaincy and Community Affairs to join hands and ensure this trend changes so that the resources on our land could be beneficiary to the people”.
King Odum also started that the youths are ready to work but due to lack of job opportunity, they engage their energy in vice, restiveness inimical to development, pointing out that in his community he is doing everything to prevent the youths from having confrontation with companies, such as blocking company gates because of its negative effects to the state.
“Although the youths most times don’t understand, they feel I’m in alliance with the companies this is why I’m calling on the companies to engage their host communities in the area of employment and other contractual engagements in order to have a harmonious relationship with their host communities”, he said.
