Esso Highlands asked to stop payments

By JEFFREY ELAPA
THE Hides 4 landowner leaders from PDL 7 have called on the Esso Highlands Ltd to take full res­ponsibility to handle all issues as demanded in their petition.
Hides 4 Landowners Umbrella Association chairman Chris Payabe said he was annoyed that the developer had gone ahead to pay landowners while the government was trying to address certain outstanding issues.
He said Petroleum and Energy Minister William Duma had instructed his departmental staff to set up a special committee to address the landowner’s issues. These issues led landowners to forcefully shut down operations at Hides 4 for 19 days.
He said the special state committee was fully operational with its terms of reference (TOR).
The committee is headed by the assistant director for policy branch, David Manau. The team is understood to have gone to Nogoli (Hides) to begin the process of consultation with the aggrieved landowners of PDL 7.
But while that was going on, Esso Highlands allegedly started the process of paying compensation.
Payabe said this was a direct insult to the government and its department and the people of Hides.