The Pali Development Association, which represents the host community of the Kolmani oilfield in Bauchi State, has urged the Federal Government to immediately resume exploration activities at the site, warning against turning the project into an election campaign promise ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The association’s chairman, Hashim Pali, made the call while reacting to a verification visit to the oilfield by the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission. He said the community welcomed genuine efforts to revive the project but wanted concrete action rather than another round of assurances.
Pali said exploration activities had stalled after equipment was evacuated from the site, despite commitments made by President Bola Tinubu during his 2023 presidential campaign. He questioned why the government was only renewing its interest in the project as another election approached, after more than three years in office.
He described Kolmani as a strategic economic project rather than an electoral slogan, arguing that its development could create jobs, improve infrastructure and energy supply, generate revenue and support wider economic development across the North-East and Nigeria.
The National Coordinator of the Coalition of Northern Groups, Jamilu Charanci, also urged the government to move beyond what he described as ceremonial verification and election-season rhetoric. He said residents of the North-East deserved to see actual exploration, production, jobs, infrastructure and measurable economic benefits.
The renewed attention followed an RMAFC delegation led by its chairman, Muhammad Bello, on a verification visit to the oilfield. Bello said the commission wanted to assess the project and advocate for the return of the momentum recorded when development began in 2023, adding that President Tinubu had assured the governors of Bauchi and Gombe that the project would be remobilised.
Bauchi State Commissioner for Natural Resources, Maiwada Bello, said work had resumed between January and June 2025 but stopped again around July after the company handling the project began demobilising. He said the state and North-East governors subsequently raised the matter with President Tinubu, who promised that work would resume, but the state had received no further update on the project.
