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Chinese company makes positive contributions to Iraq’s economic, livelihood development

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By Guan Kejiang, Ren Haoyu, People’s Daily
Halfaya oil field is one of the seven giant oil fields in Iraq. Located in southern Iraqi province of Maysan, it boasts an annual production capacity of 20 million tons. It is the largest project that PetroChina, or China National Petroleum Corporation undertakes overseas in its capacity as operator, and plays a crucial role in ensuring Iraq’s energy exports.
Haider al-Rubaie, chairman of the Iraqi-Chinese Friendship Association noted that Iraq-China energy cooperation constitutes an important part of the co-construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, and projects undertaken by Chinese enterprises have made positive contributions to Iraq’s economic recovery and livelihood development.
The oil field was discovered in 1976. However, it was not exploited by the Iraqi government due to complex geological conditions and other reasons until PetroChina, in association with several international and local energy companies, won the bidding for the Halfaya project in the second petroleum bidding round organized by the Iraqi side after the Iraq war in 2009.
Fang Jiazhong, head of PetroChina Halfaya Oil Field, said Halfaya oil field consists of multiple giant carbonate reservoirs carrying different features and having different rocks and fluids.
Multiple Chinese research institutions and enterprises launched joint researches to make innovations in both theory and practice to ensure the success of the extraction.
Fang said the tight spread of multiple oil wells within a short distance in Halfaya oil field is a good example of such innovations. He explained that oil wells extend thousands of meters underground, which are horizontal, vertical or both, so efforts must be made to ensure that these oil wells are free from mutual interference and complement each other in exploitation.
Such a tridimensional well pattern demonstrates the outstanding technological and management capability of the Chinese side, Fang added.
“Iraq is in urgent need of investment in the oil and gas industry, and China has boosted local development in the construction of the Halfaya oil field. Iraq-China energy cooperation enjoys broad prospects,” said Anwer al Bhadly, an official from the Ministry of Trade of Iraq.
He stressed that Belt and Road projects bring tangible benefits to host countries and regions, and Iraq should board the train of China’s rapid development to better cope with the challenges it faces.
A natural gas processing plant at Halfaya oil field is expected to be mechanically completed this September and put into use before the end of the year. So far, 90 percent of the construction has been completed, including cooling towers, scrubber towers and storage tanks.
Massive natural gas would be generated during the exploitation of crude oil. However, in Iraq, such natural gas is mostly burned at sites of oil exploration because natural gas processing calls for huge investment, takes a long time and is technically challenging. It not only is a waste of resources, but also creates severe pollution when burning the gas. Therefore, the construction of the natural gas processing plant at Halfaya oil field draws wide attention in Iraq.
The plant will be the first major associated gas project in Iraq after being put into operation. It is expected to reduce nearly 30,000 tons of sulfur dioxide emissions, and the liquefied petroleum gas it produces each year can generate 5 billion kWh of electricity, which meets the demand for 4 million local households.
Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Oil Minister Hayan Abdul Ghani hailed PetroChina for making significant contributions to solving local livelihood problems, saying the company has worked actively to tackle challenges and steadily promoted the construction of the natural gas processing plant at Halfaya oil field.
“It is hoped that the project can be completed soon and alleviate local energy shortage as early as possible,” he added.
PetroChina Halfaya Oil Field has launched a series of training programs for local university students to promote local employment and improve Iraq’s talent training. It is learned that many trainees have become department heads or project leaders.
“When I just joined the company, it was still a wasteland here. Now, it’s covered by trees and neatly built constructions. There’s even a small airport here. Employees of the company come from dozens of countries, and the company just provides us a place where we get better through mutual learning,” said Ali Nasir Waheed AL-Lami, Section Head of Recruitment, Human Resources Department, PetroChina Halfaya Oil Field.
He told People’s Daily that the company has over 1,600 Iraqi employees, account for over 80 percent of the company’s total workforce.
The Hawizeh Marshes in Halfaya oil field is the only wetland in Iraq protected by the Ramsar Convention. Its ecological environment is highly sensitive. Halfaya oil field strictly follows environmental protection standards, so as to reduce pollutions from human activities and build a virtuous ecological cycle for the wetland, which has effectively protected the habitat of migratory birds.
Besides, PetroChina is also actively joining local public welfare. It offers food for local communities, helps them repair roads, build bridges, tunnels, high-voltage power transmission lines, ditches and other infrastructure projects. It has also donated activity rooms, school buses and stationery to local schools, as well as home appliances and furniture to local residents.
Ali Dawai Lazem, Governor of Maysan Province, noted that the Chinese company has made huge contributions to improving Iraq’s public welfare, employment and livelihood, and strengthened the traditional friendship and pragmatic cooperation between Iraq and China.

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SERAP sues Akpabio over ‘failure to reverse unlawful suspension of Natasha Akpoti’

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The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against Senate President Godswill Akpabio over the suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. The group argues that the suspension is unlawful and violates her fundamental right to freedom of expression.

SERAP is seeking a court order compelling Akpabio to reverse the six-month suspension, reinstate Akpoti-Uduaghan, and restore all her legislative privileges. The organization also wants an injunction preventing the Senate from imposing further disciplinary actions against her for expressing her views.

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended after she reportedly spoke without permission and rejected a new seat assignment in the Senate chamber. As part of her suspension, her salary and allowances have been withheld, and she has been barred from identifying as a senator.

In its suit filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja, SERAP contends that the suspension deprives Akpoti-Uduaghan’s constituents of political representation. The organization also argues that penalizing a senator for exercising free speech creates a chilling effect on other lawmakers.

“No one should ever be punished for speaking without permission,” SERAP stated. “The Senate should uphold the rule of law and protect human rights, not suppress them.”

The group cites constitutional provisions and international human rights treaties, including Section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

SERAP maintains that the Senate Standing Orders cannot override constitutional guarantees of free speech. The lawsuit emphasizes that restricting a senator’s expression undermines democracy and violates Nigerians’ right to receive information and participate politically.

No date has been set for the hearing of the case.

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Market associations, women groups knock el-Rufai, rally support for Tinubu, Gov Sani

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Ahead of the 2027 elections, hundreds of members of market associations and numerous women groups in Kaduna state at the weekend, occupied Kaduna metropolis in a peaceful demonstration where they reiterated their loyalty and support to the administration of
Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna state and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The protesters who alleged that they had bitter experiences during the El-Rufa’i administration, said they would remain where Governor Uba Sani stood and advised the citizens of Kaduna not to be deceived by doing the contrary.
They recounted their ordeals during the 8 years of the previous administration, alleging that hundreds of market shops belonging to individuals were either seized, demolished or confiscated, a situation that triggered ill health in many traders and business owners leading to paralysis and multiple deaths of their colleagues.

“We’ve been in the market for over 40 years and have never experienced the kind of set backs we suffered under the previous Governor.”

“A lot of lives were lost,a lot of finances were ruined by reason of his kind of policies. We are here to speak with one voice and say that anything that would kind of revive such kind of philosophy in Kaduna market, we don’t want it,” Daniel Audu Maigari, a stakeholder of the Kaduna Market associations, has said.

He explained that “this incumbent Governor began by healing the wounds, the wounds that were really severed by the former Governor. Governor Uba Sani has been doing so,so very well and that’s why we’ve been with our leader, Alhaji Abdurrahman Mohammed, who like Governor Sani,has been charting the right course, ensuring programmes and plans that will heal these wounds .”

He said there was never been a time they are having the impact of leadership in Kaduna market, like they are having now.

” Now we’ve lots of incentives, lots of policies that are driving us to progress .We are now standing with one voice to denounce anything that would reverse this,” he said.

Alhaji Daiyabu Ismail Mai Gwanjo, Chairman Stakeholders of the Kaduna State Market Traders associations, said on behalf of their leader,Alhaji Abdurrahman Mohammed, his EXCO and all trader leaders in the 23 Local Government Areas of Kaduna State, they have gathered to unilaterally declare an unalloyed support to Governor Uba Sani who had taken care of them and protected their interests.
According to him,” we have to say so,haven had the harrowing experience in the hands of the past administration. The scar still remains and many are yet to recover.”
“But when Almighty Allah sent Governor Uba Sani to us,he declared he would not do anything bad to traders because the world thrives on businesses.All the most cherished countries like China, Canada, UAE, India,are very proud of and supportive to their traders and other business persons.”

“Unfortunately, we found ourselves during the previous administration that neither showed empathy nor sympathy to traders. An approximate number of 36 markets were demolished at that time.None of these markets was completely rebuild ,till date,and we are suspicious of the collaboration between the previous administration and the market developers.”

“We are therefore calling on Governor Uba Sani, our Governor of sympathy and understanding, to look at this issue with a view to resolving it.We are with Uba Sani a hundred percent, ” he added.

Hajiya Hadiza Abdulaziz,a woman leader of the market association,said they have gathered in multitudes to reiterate their support to the APC and Governor Uba Sani who has tremendously supported the market men and women in Kaduna State.
” Most of the market women had no shops because the shops were collected. But now we give God the glory everybody has gotten their shops back and nobody will collect it again,” she said.

She expressed happiness that those making the market women not to achieve, had left the party and government.

“We’ve been crying, a lot of market women don’t have capital, they have been deceiving us.But now,I believe Governor Uba Sani is going to assist us,”she added.

The protesters later took to the streets ,displaying placards with various inscriptions denouncing the previous arrangements, and chanting slogans in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Governor Uba Sani and the All Progressives Congress, APC.
” Most of the market women had no shops because the shops were collected. But now we give God the glory everybody has gotten their shops back and nobody will collect it again,” she said.

She expressed happiness that those making the market women not to achieve, had left the party and government.

“We’ve been crying, a lot of market women don’t have capital, they have been deceiving us.But now,I believe Governor Uba Sani is going to assist us,”she added.

The protesters later took to the streets ,displaying placards with various inscriptions denouncing the previous arrangements, and chanting slogans in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Governor Uba Sani and the All Progressives Congress, APC.

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Obasanjo bemoans selection process of traditional rulers in Nigeria

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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has raised concerns over the selection process of traditional rulers in Nigeria, stating that criminal elements have infiltrated royal institutions. He lamented that individuals with questionable backgrounds, including drug addicts, vagabonds, bandits, and kidnappers, now hold positions of authority as traditional rulers.

Obasanjo made these remarks in his newly released book, Nigeria: Past and Future, unveiled last week. He criticized the rapid increase in traditional rulers, many of whom, he claimed, lack the training and moral integrity required for the role. According to him, this deterioration has weakened the institution’s ability to contribute positively to the nation’s socio-political stability.

“Today, there are criminals, drug addicts, vagabonds, bandits, and kidnappers as so-called traditional rulers,” Obasanjo stated, stressing that some have abandoned their cultural responsibilities and engaged in misconduct. He cited an example of a monarch allegedly involved in electoral malpractice, questioning the moral integrity of such leaders.

“How do we account for a traditional ruler snatching a ballot box at an election polling station and running away with it?” he queried.

Reflecting on the past, Obasanjo noted that traditional rulers once commanded immense respect, especially during colonial and early post-independence eras. However, he said, their influence has been diluted due to the lack of proper training and moral reformation.

“The class of traditional rulers with their distinction, honour, and dignity, as we knew them in the colonial days and early post-independence days, has been diluted and polluted,” he remarked.

Calling for urgent reforms, the former president stressed the need to restore the lost dignity of traditional leadership. He emphasized that rather than being a liability, traditional rulers should play a vital role in national development.

“That dignity, aura, and respect should be brought back, and traditional rulers should be an asset to Nigeria’s development and greatness, not a liability,” he asserted.

Obasanjo further called for moral rejuvenation among traditional rulers, particularly those from historically significant institutions. He maintained that if properly positioned, they could contribute significantly to Nigeria’s long-term progress.

“There is a need for moral re-armament among the traditional rulers—the ancient and historic ones. They can and should make meaningful contributions to the Nigeria of our dreams that will serve the purpose and interest of all,” he concluded.

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