The decision by the Nigerian government to begin oil extraction in Ogoniland has been denounced by a coalition of Niger Delta civil society organizations as inappropriate in the absence of more extensive community participation and redress for historical wrongs.
The groups denounced the government’s strategy of interacting with a small number of Ogoni leaders while excluding the larger community during a meeting Tuesday at the Environmental Rights Action and Friends of the Earth Nigeria office in Port Harcourt.
According to the group, it is incredibly unfair to resume oil production in Ogoniland without resolving the region’s long-standing environmental, social, and economic problems.
The results of the 2011 UNEP Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland, which showed widespread air, water, and land contamination from decades of unregulated oil exploitation, were cited.
The coalition, which includes the following organizations: Shell be held responsible for environmental degradation and human rights violations in the region; a review of the military trial and execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and other Ogoni activists; their exoneration; the release of the confiscated Ken Saro-Wiwa Memorial Bus sculpture; a halt to oil extraction plans in Ogoniland until meaningful consultations are held with the Ogoni people and the environment is fully remediated; and more.
Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Advisor (NSA), was assigned by President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday to spearhead talks with important parties in Ogoniland, a region in the Niger Delta that is rich in oil, in order to resume oil production there.
When the President met with Ogoni leaders, including Governor Siminalayi Fubara, in the Aso Villa in Abuja, he gave the order.
The meeting was also attended by Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, or FCT.
The advancement of justice, peace, and sustainable development in the area would be the main priorities of Tinubu’s administration.
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He appealed for harmony and peace, asking the Ogoni people to set aside their old grudges and work together for harmony, development, and a better environment.
“We can correct some anomalies of the past going forward, but we cannot in any way rewrite history,” Tinubu said, according to a statement released by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga. The wounds cannot be healed if we stay furious.
“We need to collaborate with trust in one another. Return home, consult with others more, and show others love.
We need to return to Ogoniland with peace, progress, and a clean environment in order to make our journey worthwhile.
In order for the Office of the National Security Adviser to carry out this responsibility, he encouraged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, or NNPCL, and the Rivers State Government to collaborate.
