An Ijaw environmental activist, Dr. Bolouowei Kurokeme, has urged the federal government and key stakeholders in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector to revisit and formally acknowledge the legacy of Chief Dan Etete, former Minister of Petroleum Resources, describing him as a trailblazer in the fight for Nigeria’s oil sovereignty and indigenous participation in the energy industry.
Speaking with journalists recently Kurokeme highlighted Etete’s instrumental role in laying the groundwork for local content development through bold policy reforms in the 1990s—many of which continue to shape Nigeria’s current gains in the sector.
“I wish to state with high sense of responsibility that Chief Dan Etete did not have direct interest in OPL 245. It was the directors of Malabu that appointed him as a consultant to the oil firm,” Kurokeme said.
He recalled that Etete was the architect behind the Marginal Field Decree of 1998, which opened up Nigeria’s oil and gas sector to indigenous operators. “For the record, Etete was the one that set up the Marginal Field Decree of 1998 for the benefit of all Nigerians to be included in the oil and gas industry,” he noted.
Kurokeme linked Etete’s early vision to the current “Nigeria First Policy” of President Bola Tinubu, which promotes local content and emphasizes the use of made-in-Nigeria goods.
“Please note that the foresight of Etete in pioneering local content is the foundation for the recent dynamic Nigeria First Policy by President Bola Tinubu that places emphasis on made in Nigeria goods,” he said.
Referencing recent data from the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Kurokeme noted that Nigeria had attained an unprecedented 56 percent local content participation by the end of 2024.
“But we must never forget that this journey started with the visionary leadership of Chief Etete,” he said. “He was a pioneer who dared to challenge foreign monopolies and empowered Nigerian entrepreneurs at a time when it was unpopular—even dangerous—to do so.”
Etete’s tenure from 1995 to 1998, under the late General Sani Abacha’s regime, coincided with a period of intense political tension and foreign control over Nigeria’s oil assets. Despite the volatility, Kurokeme said, Etete allocated oil blocks to indigenous companies—including OPL 245 to Malabu Oil and Gas—as part of a broader economic sovereignty strategy.
“These allocations were not arbitrary handouts. They were strategic interventions aimed at transferring wealth, building local capacity and giving Nigerians a direct stake in their oil wealth,” he explained.
Kurokeme also defended Etete’s role in the OPL 245 controversy, stating that no domestic or international court has found the former minister guilty of corruption.
“The Malabu case is a classic example of how nationalist efforts in the Global South are vilified when they threaten the interests of international capital. Etete wasn’t perfect, but he was a patriot who wanted Nigerians—especially the Niger Delta people—to benefit directly from their God-given resources,” he asserted.
According to Kurokeme, court rulings in both Italy and Nigeria have affirmed the legality of Malabu’s ownership of OPL 245, further reinforcing Etete’s clean record.
He also emphasized Etete’s deep connection with oil-producing communities, describing him as a committed advocate for resource control, environmental justice, and Niger Delta development long before these issues became national priorities.
Born in the heartland of the Ijaw nation, Etete, he said, “had a strong affinity with the struggles of oil-bearing communities and advocated for greater resource control, environmental remediation, and Niger Delta development.”
Kurokeme credited Etete’s policies for laying the foundation upon which major indigenous oil companies—such as Seplat, Aiteo, Sahara Energy, and Oando—would later rise. He also noted the philosophical alignment between Etete’s reforms and the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act of 2010, which formalized local content in law.
“Today’s gains are the fruits of trees he planted decades ago. He deserves credit, not condemnation,” Kurokeme declared.
As Etete recently marked his 80th birthday, Kurokeme described him as a “misunderstood reformer” whose contributions to Nigeria’s energy sovereignty have been deliberately downplayed.
“Though one may not always agree with his political leaning, you cannot but honour his far-above-petty-politicking disposition. He is a typical example of politics without bitterness, and never the one to court the vagaries of double speak in the often volatile terrain of Nigeria’s political discourse,” he said.
He also called on the federal government to initiate national conversations aimed at correcting what he termed a “distorted legacy” and to formally recognize Etete’s role in advancing indigenous participation in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.