The Presidency has at last moved to clear the air on the controversy surrounding the purported relocation of the Petroleum University from Effurum to Kaduna, saying that no such decision was taken by President Umaru Yar'Adua.

Describing the controversy as needless, Aso Rock stressed that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on May 25, this year merely approved a memorandum for contracts that will reactivate the Nigeria National College of Petroleum Studies, Kaduna which was established in 1995 by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) "for the training of higher level technical and senior management personnel who are transiting to general management level within the Corporation."

A statement issued on Saturday by presidential spokesman, Olusegun Adeniyi, said, "from the documents attached to the memo, a programme of action approved by President Olusegun Obasanjo on April 15, 2002 was for the reactivation of the College of Petroleum Studies Kaduna;

"Upgrade of the Petroleum Training Institute, Effurum; establishment of offshore Technology Development Centres; upgrading the curricula and facilities in universities and polytechnics relevant to the PTDF mandate; capacity building and skill acquisition programmes as well as endowment of petroleum technology related chairs in selected universities.

"There has been no reversal of any of these programmes by President Yar'Adua."

Adeniyi insisted that "the PTI Effurum is an institution dear to the President's heart because of its strategic importance to the development of our oil and gas industry and he is ready to dialogue with all the stakeholders not only on how to make it the world class institution it was conceived to be but also to advance the Niger Delta peace process and hasten his developmental agenda for the people."

On the implementation of the amnesty offered Niger Delta militants by the Federal Government, he said the Amnesty Coordinator, Lucky Ararile, and Presidential Adviser on Niger Delta, Timi Alaibe, have "in the last two weeks, made tremendous progress with regard to the amnesty process. Result of these efforts will soon become manifest to all Nigerians.

"President Yar'Adua therefore enjoins all the critical stakeholders to enlist for the promotion of peace that would create the enabling environment for the rapid development in the Niger Delta for which he is very much committed."