The Nation Newspaper

Category: Niger Delta

  • Spills leave Bayelsa communities helpless

    Spills leave Bayelsa communities helpless

    Stephen Ziworitin, a 13-year-old indigene of  Keme-Ebiama, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, Bayelsa State, was disappointed recently when he went to the river in his area to take his bath in the morning.

    He could not believe his eyes. The river did not just change in its outlook, it emitted offensive odour. In fact, he could no longer differentiate between the water and crude oil.

    He said:  “I decided to go and take my bath at the waterside and return to my bed. But when I got to the waterside, I noticed a strange smell and later, the crude oil on the river. I moved away from the first spot to another side and, it was still the same there too.

    “Left with no option, I had to strive to part the crude oil and when the water appeared in the middle; I quickly fetched some water and took home to bathe. That was how I managed to bathe that day.

    “Even as at that, my body was shining, oily. It is difficult for us to get water to bathe before going to school these days. Even with the school bell ringing we stand just looking at the water, no way to bathe before going to school. Our problem is not limited to only bathing, even to wash our dirty school uniform is a problem”.

    In fact, all is not well between the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and its Keme-Ebiama and other host communities in Ogboinbiri, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, Bayelsa State.

    The bone of contention is an oil spill described by community sources as major and devastating. The spill is reported to have sent heavy volume of crude oil to the entire river located in the area. The river is polluted.

    The spill, which flows from Shell’s Seibou Deep facility has impacted many downstream  communities . The spills are circulated faster by water current. Communities said to have been impacted are Keme-Ebiama, Apoi, Kokologbene, Gbaruan,  Ukubie, Lobia and others.

    A report from the Environmental Right Action (ERA) signed by its Field Officer, Mr. Alagoa Morris, said that Shell has three wellheads at the end of a canal constructed by the company some years ago. The canal which links the Ogboinbiri River is located by the Ogboinbiri community.

    ERA explains the devastating effects of spills that occur in bodies of water. The report said: “It is a well known fact that there is one major characteristic difference between spills that occur on bodies of water and those that happen on land. This is even more true when the body of water is flowing.

    “The difference lies in the fact that oil spills on moving bodies of water spread and flow along with whichever direction the current is headed. This also happens when the spill on lands spreads and gets into any moving body of water.

    “One of the reason spills spread easily on water is that, apart from the influence from the current, there are no topography issues when it comes to water in most cases.

    “Unlike land where the spread would be influence by topography; it spreads very easily on water. And, unless steps are taken promptly to contain the spill, the spill could travel as far as the water current carries it.”

    But the communities are worried that the expected swift attention has yet to be given to the disaster by the company. The Chairman of the Keme-Ebiama Community Development Committee (CDC), Columbus John-Bull confirmed that the spill occurred at Seibou 2 facility of Shell at Ogboinbiri.

    e said the spill spread to affect the rivers right from the Ogboinbiri axis to other rivers in the area. “The volume of crude oil was really heavy. It covered the whole of our river.

    “It was so devastating that our people could no longer go to the river and take their bath or fetch drinking water; the river is our main source of drinking and every other domestic use. Due to the heavy pollution and resultant scarcity of drinking water, the cost of water sachet in the community rose from N10.00 to N30.00.

    “And, most of our people cannot afford the sachet water at that price. We are very much worried of what the situation might lead to considering the recent outbreak of cholera in some communities in the local government area”, he said.

    He appealed to the company to immediately clean-up the river and its banks properly. He urged Shell to send relief materials including water and drugs and pay adequate compensation for the pollution, damage and inconveniences suffered by the community.

    He said: “This call has become necessary because we have suffered this sort of thing other times from Shell and Agip and they have continued to ignore our cries; with no feelings whatsoever for us as if we are not human beings. They would always say that the spill was caused by third party and so, there is nothing they can do.

    “But we are far away from whatever source the so-called third-party spill comes from. How can we continue to suffer from what we know nothing about like that? Those who benefit from those past spills we suffered were people from different places, strangers who got the contracts for clean-up and other related matters.

    “We that are directly impacted are always left just like that; to suffer from the negative impacts only. We are tired of this inhuman treatment and, we want Shell to do those things I mentioned earlier: Clean-up, send Relief materials and compensate the community adequately”.

    A leader from the community, Chief Barack Ogiere further confirmed the incident. He said: “Very early in the morning when we went down to the waterside, we observed that crude oil has visited us again; covering the whole surface of the water.

    “It was devastating because we couldn’t take our bath again in the river, no way to fetch and drink the water from the river; we could no longer do anything with the river we depend on. And we don’t even have any wells or borehole here, the river has been our only source of water.

    “Neither the oil companies  nor the government has considered implementing any projects here for us. I haven’t had my bathe throughout today. Since the spill is traced to Shell’s facility at Ogboinbiri; the company should come and clean-up our environment to the original state God gave to us, because we solely depend on this river for every of our water needs.

    “We even need relief materials right now before clean-up. Besides they should pay compensation for the severity of this heavy volume of crude oil spill that has just impacted us. The suffering is continuing, children are sick in the community.”

    A woman, Mrs. Peretei Francis, said the river was highly polluted. She said they were managing the water before but later discovered they could no longer use it.

    She said: “The current reality is that we cannot make use of the water again; it is polluted. When we fetch it to the house and drink, the children begin to fall sick. In the light of the above, Shell should come and clean-up the river for us without delays.

    “They should come and repair what has been damaged by the crude oil. The fishes have also no more around since this spill spread to this environment; we no longer kill fish. All the fish nets we set around the river have been impacted, soaked by crude oil and so; they can no longer catch fish.

    “So, they should come and repair the river for us. After that, they should give us borehole as an alternative source of water. Shell should also send us relief materials: food including fish, because there is no more fish around, drugs and water.

    “We are hungry and presently most of the children are suffering from stomach ache. So they should quickly come and clean the impacted river for us. I also have a message for the Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC), please tell NAOC that they should stop turning the river into refuse dump. All the wastes they dump in the river are being transferred to us downstream and we are not happy with the act”.

    In its observation, ERA, said booms used by Shell to contain the spills had failed. It said the community people were obviously worried about the situation.

    •The signs of the pollution on the way from Ogboinbiri to Keme-Ebiama
    •The signs of the pollution on the way from Ogboinbiri to Keme-Ebiama

    “Crude oil slick was observed right from Ogboinbiri till the field monitors got to Keme-Ebiama. The Water Hyacinths floating on the river and by the sides of the river were soaked in crude oil and were wilting.

    “Although the people said due to the one-way flowing current the volume of crude oil has reduced; much was still observed within the immediate environment of the community”, it said.

    ERA further knocked Shell for not conducting Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) two months after the spill. “This is very strange and unacceptable. Shell cannot leave crude oil in the open and on the canal where fisher folks and farmers also access”, it said.

    ERA demanded that Shell should mobilize to ensure that JIV is done concerning the spill. It called on the relevant agencies of government and security agencies to take appropriate measures to ensure Shell does the right thing and promptly too.

    “Shell should send relief materials, food stuff, water, medical team and drugs to take care of the concerns and needs of the impacted communities.

    “Shell should not only take full responsibility of the spreading crude oil spilt from the company’s facility; Shell should also carry out adequate clean-up of the impacted rivers/creeks and surrounding environment.

    “Shell should compensate victims of the spreading crude oil. Payment should take into consideration individual and general damages”, the report said.

    The state government is also very unhappy with Shell’s handling of the incident. The Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Iniruo Wills, said the government was taking the massive pollution seriously. Wills said the government had sent a letter to Shell emphasizing the importance of immediately cleaning the impacted site.

    He also said that the management of Shell was invited to a meeting to discuss the development on Tuesday. But he regretted that the company did not show up.

    He said: “We are taking it seriously. We have written to ask them to ensure quick clean-up and containment of the area with the full involvement of the State Ministry of Environment and National Oil Spill Detection Response Agency (NOSDRA).

    “We also invited them for a meeting but they didn’t show up. So,we will proceed with some of the steps we have in mind to unfold.”

    The Spokesman of SPDC, Mr Joseph Obari, said at the weekend that the firm was yet to conduct a Joint Investigation Visit on the spill site.

     

     

  • Tompolo, Asari only reacted to North’s threat, says Oritsejafor

    Tompolo, Asari only reacted to North’s threat, says Oritsejafor

    Minister of State for Defence during the Chief Olusegun Obasanjo administration, Dr Rowland Oritsejafor, has defended the position of ex-Niger Delta militant leaders on the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan.

    Oritsejafor, in an interview with reporters in Warri, Delta State, said the ex-militant leaders were not threatening the country but reacting to statements made by some North’s leaders.

    He said: “The militants only reacted to what the Northern have said. Let us be conscious in analyzing security situation. Where you make a statement does not suggest or mean that it is the party’s policy. Let’s get that very clear. I can be invited to Aso Rock and then I make a statement, does that mean that the president supported what I said. Let us be very clear, PDP is a peaceful government with well-respected and responsible people. There is no way the PDP would support violence. Some people are making statements, I cannot come and defend those statements because I don’t know from where they are coming and I wasn’t there. However, as far as PDP is concern, we will pursue peace and it is in our interest to pursue peace. So why would we want to invest in violence when we have opportunity to show what we can do. You can hear the president going round, it is all about what he has done and he keeps rolling them out.

    “In the past, indeed of our faults as a party is that we underreported our achievement and we are correcting that now and things  are taking a better shape so I don’t see what we should embrace violence.”

    He also justified the award of surveillance contracts to the ex-militants.

    Oritsejafor said: “All over the world it is people that acquire weapons as long as you have the license to do it. To me that is not the problem. We have to be very careful with this issue. We should not politicize everything. Every Nigerian citizen has the right to acquire weapons if he is licensed. But unless you have something against them and you have taken them to a competent court of law. Yes these guys were militants. But let me ask you a question, do these guys have a cause for carrying arm against the Federal Government? The fact they were militants does not stop them from partaking in activities going on in the country. They carried arms because they were oppressed and when they protested, government recognised that they have been wronged and the matter was corrected.”

    On whether Jonathan deserves another term, he said:“He has done so much. The challenges are colossal but if you look at governance, he has brought governance closer to the people in different area. Is it transportation, electricity has improved. We are talking about measurable indices of performance. Since I came to Warri the light has not tripped and no generator and you know power is key to us. Things are happening you can see gender equality. The president of Rwanda became extremely popular because of given opportunities to women folks in terms of governance and you can see what is happening here; he brought in trusted woman who are doing well in the area of government.

    “Security is a great challenge, it is unfortunate, but the mistake between us and those who have security in their country is that security is not left only in the hands of profession; everybody has to be cautious in the area of security. It is only then that you can help the professionals to achieve what they want. People who are throwing bombs are living among us. Why are we silent, why are we not observant and why do we wait till people are killed, maimed and property destroyed before we start shouting. I want to appeal that security is collective responsibility. It should not be used as an index of political achievement. That will be sad. All of us, our lives are important, are future and property are important so we must all be committed to the security of the nation.”

     

  • Belemaoil pledges to implement UNEP report as youths kick over sale of Shell’s assets

    Belemaoil pledges to implement UNEP report as youths kick over sale of Shell’s assets

    An indigenous oil and gas producing firm, Belema Oil, seeking to resume oil production in Ogoniland in Rivers State has promised to abide by the United Nation Environmental Program (UNEP) Report if given consent.

    The Chief Executive Officer / Managing Director of the firm, Tein Jack-Rich (Jr), made the pledge while addressing  Ogoni youths at Yeghe Community, in Gokana Local Government Area.

    The firm is owned by an indigene of the state from Kalabari. He is among seven others, including Chinese company seeking approval to take-over oil production activities in the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), OML 11 abandoned in 1993.

    Addressing Ogono youths in Yeghe, Jack-Rich promised to follow the terms and conditions stipulated in the UNEP report in carrying out oil activities in the area, including the clean-up of oil impacted areas.

    Jack-Rich promised to create employment opportunities for youths of the area, give 300 scholarship slots to indigent youths in the university and release the sum of N24 million grants for farmers of Ogoni origin.

    The MD said: “Belemaoil is you and me and what Belemaoil will do is to abide by UNEP report, ensure you have a voice and a say in anything that has to do with your future. We will create employment, empowerment programmes and projects. We will provide scholarship scheme for indigent Ogoni indigene that have the dream of going to School, starting with 300 students.

    “We also have designed a programme to support farmers in Ogoni, we have mapped out a sum of N24 million in form of grant.

    “Belemaoil is not here to cajole you, I am aware of your needs; I am a Rivers man, I know and understand the plights/ difficulties faced by oil bearing communities of the Niger Delta region like yours and I promise that I will carry everybody along, as for me days of divide and rule tactics are over , just give me a chance to prove myself.” He appealed.

    Reacting to rumor he was fronting for a politicians in the state, he said: “Belema Oil does not belong to any political platform. It is a company from Rivers State, Kula in Kalabari Kingdom of the state.

    “Belema has a Foundation known as Belema Aid Foundation and as a mark of seriousness we have already acquired a piece of land to set up the Foundation’s secretariat in Ogoni to enable us begin to implement the scholarship and grant disbursement programmes. The office will be ready within six months.”

    The Leader of Association of Community Youths of Ogoni, Mr. Mao Kekah, said: “We are here today as youths of Ogoni to identify and partner with Belema, to transform our lives. Chiefs, youths, MOSOP and other groups of Ogoni have been consulted, what we are doing here today is a sort of grand finale of all the consultations and every one of us gathered here is in support of Belema.

    “You have heard his promises, we have not had it this way before. Belema is not the only person bidding for this OML11, I learnt a total of eight companies are on the role yet he is the only person that has come to us.”

    He also warned the bidder on the dangers of indulging in divide-and-rule approach when he begins exploration.

    “Thank you Belema for identifying with this group, just as we had earlier told you, this are those that would have given you problems and generate unbearable heat to you if you did not meet with them as far as Ogoni is concerned, but for them to have given you the audience, it is an indication that they have accepted you.

    “But be warned ensure that you implement all that you have told them here today, be and remain sincere with us I assure you that you will not have any problem with us.

    “We do not want any form of divide and rule, if we notice any thing of such, even if the government grants you the licence to start exploration, we will resist it, you will be surprised at what we will do.”

    Also the leader of another group known as Ogoni Youths, Chief Solomon Ndigbara, pledged his support for the indigenous oil company on the condition that he would implement the agreements he has reached with the people.

    He said: “When I heard about Belema Oil Producing company I was happy but happier when I discovered he is a young man.

    “We can give him support if he is actually going to carry out all that he has promised to the youths. We have had promises that never worked in the past and would not want to robe ourselves into such lies again.

    “I have past a stage in my live when people will come here to deceive us and go. But after several meetings between him and key youth leaders of Ogoniland, we have agreed to give him our supports with the hope that he will keep to his words.”

    Their declaration points were also read out to the acceptance of those present in the meeting.

    The Ogoni Youth Foundation has, however, refused to endorse the company.

    During a protest to the Port Harcourt office of The Nation, the youths led by their President, Mr. Dowell Badom, accused the  oil company of causing a fresh crisis in Ogoni communities. They alleged that the new company lacks understanding of the lingering crisis between the communities and SPDC before venturing into any agreement to take over production in the area.

    Badom said, Ogoni Youth Foundation, and Ogoni Kingdom Youth Forum chapters have refused to endorse the new oil company to protect the people of the area from another betrayal. He noted that their refusal to endorse the new oil company will send a signal to the company and Ogoni chiefs who have hurriedly endorsed the new oil company without consulting the youth body that all is not well.

    He alleged that “Ogoni oil bearing community chiefs have endorse the Belema Oil without the input of the Ogoni Youth Host Communities. But we are assuring the chiefs and the new company that without proper consultations and the engagement of the Ogoni Youth Foundation, we will not allow any indigenous company to enter into our oil bearing communities.

    “We have stated our positions and our decisions are predicated on the fact that Belema Oil Company has no oil social license from the oil field landlords in Ogoni land. The demand for the cleanup of Ogoni land, compensation for the Ogoni people, payment of rents, royalty for 56 years of a oil multi-national company operating in our communities are yet to be resolved. We are using this opportunity to call on the Belema Oil Company to stop parading itself as an owner of assets in Ogoni land until the company decides to consults all stakeholders involved in the area.”

    He continued that the Ogoni people are peaceful, hospitable and believe in a non-violent struggle but the youth leader insisted that any buyer of oil blocks in Ogoni territory must engage the Ogoni Youth Foundation and relevant stakeholders.

    He said the new oil company has no right of ownership to OML 11 (Oil Mining Lease 11) because the Ogoni people are the rightful owners. He said Ogoni people are expecting £18 Billion representing royalties on petroleum mining in Ogoni land since 1958, and £4 Billion compensation for environmental pollution and ecological degradation in Ogoni communities.

    “These sums remain unpaid to date and we shall not renege on it at this point in our struggle. We therefore, call on the good people of Ogoni to resist any attempt to fraudulently sell Ogoni Oil through the back door.

    The Ogoni Youth Foundation has supported a new lunch of National Ogoni Restoration Empowerment Program (NOREP) an initiative to provide a means of livelihood for economic empowerment to the Ogoni youths to be self employed and to develop the indigenous companies for training in the area of oil and gas.

    “We call on the Federal Ministry of Petroleum, Government Oil Agencies, the oil companies to partner with the OYF and other bodies to ensure that NOREP assist the Ogoni Youths in various skills. We also want them to provide the NOREP assisted transport services scheme as a means of empowerment to restore the livelihood of the youths to stop restiveness in our communities.”

  • Spills leave Bayelsa communities helpless

    Spills leave Bayelsa communities helpless

    He said the spill spread to affect the rivers right from the Ogboinbiri axis to other rivers in the area. “The volume of crude oil was really heavy. It covered the whole of our river.

    “It was so devastating that our people could no longer go to the river and take their bath or fetch drinking water; the river is our main source of drinking and every other domestic use. Due to the heavy pollution and resultant scarcity of drinking water, the cost of water sachet in the community rose from N10.00 to N30.00.

    “And, most of our people cannot afford the sachet water at that price. We are very much worried of what the situation might lead to considering the recent outbreak of cholera in some communities in the local government area”, he said.

    He appealed to the company to immediately clean-up the river and its banks properly. He urged Shell to send relief materials including water and drugs and pay adequate compensation for the pollution, damage and inconveniences suffered by the community.

    He said: “This call has become necessary because we have suffered this sort of thing other times from Shell and Agip and they have continued to ignore our cries; with no feelings whatsoever for us as if we are not human beings. They would always say that the spill was caused by third party and so, there is nothing they can do.

    “But we are far away from whatever source the so-called third-party spill comes from. How can we continue to suffer from what we know nothing about like that? Those who benefit from those past spills we suffered were people from different places, strangers who got the contracts for clean-up and other related matters.

    “We that are directly impacted are always left just like that; to suffer from the negative impacts only. We are tired of this inhuman treatment and, we want Shell to do those things I mentioned earlier: Clean-up, send Relief materials and compensate the community adequately”.

    A leader from the community, Chief Barack Ogiere further confirmed the incident. He said: “Very early in the morning when we went down to the waterside, we observed that crude oil has visited us again; covering the whole surface of the water.

    “It was devastating because we couldn’t take our bath again in the river, no way to fetch and drink the water from the river; we could no longer do anything with the river we depend on. And we don’t even have any wells or borehole here, the river has been our only source of water.

    “Neither the oil companies  nor the government has considered implementing any projects here for us. I haven’t had my bathe throughout today. Since the spill is traced to Shell’s facility at Ogboinbiri; the company should come and clean-up our environment to the original state God gave to us, because we solely depend on this river for every of our water needs.

    “We even need relief materials right now before clean-up. Besides they should pay compensation for the severity of this heavy volume of crude oil spill that has just impacted us. The suffering is continuing, children are sick in the community.”

    A woman, Mrs. Peretei Francis, said the river was highly polluted. She said they were managing the water before but later discovered they could no longer use it.

    She said: “The current reality is that we cannot make use of the water again; it is polluted. When we fetch it to the house and drink, the children begin to fall sick. In the light of the above, Shell should come and clean-up the river for us without delays.

    “They should come and repair what has been damaged by the crude oil. The fishes have also no more around since this spill spread to this environment; we no longer kill fish. All the fish nets we set around the river have been impacted, soaked by crude oil and so; they can no longer catch fish.

    “So, they should come and repair the river for us. After that, they should give us borehole as an alternative source of water. Shell should also send us relief materials: food including fish, because there is no more fish around, drugs and water.

    “We are hungry and presently most of the children are suffering from stomach ache. So they should quickly come and clean the impacted river for us. I also have a message for the Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC), please tell NAOC that they should stop turning the river into refuse dump. All the wastes they dump in the river are being transferred to us downstream and we are not happy with the act”.

    In its observation, ERA, said booms used by Shell to contain the spills had failed. It said the community people were obviously worried about the situation.

    “Crude oil slick was observed right from Ogboinbiri till the field monitors got to Keme-Ebiama. The Water Hyacinths floating on the river and by the sides of the river were soaked in crude oil and were wilting.

    “Although the people said due to the one-way flowing current the volume of crude oPolluted wateril has reduced; much was still observed within the immediate environment of the community”, it said.

    ERA further knocked Shell for not conducting Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) two months after the spill. “This is very strange and unacceptable. Shell cannot leave crude oil in the open and on the canal where fisher folks and farmers also access”, it said.

    ERA demanded that Shell should mobilize to ensure that JIV is done concerning the spill. It called on the relevant agencies of government and security agencies to take appropriate measures to ensure Shell does the right thing and promptly too.

    “Shell should send relief materials, food stuff, water, medical team and drugs to take care of the concerns and needs of the impacted communities.

    “Shell should not only take full responsibility of the spreading crude oil spilt from the company’s facility; Shell should also carry out adequate clean-up of the impacted rivers/creeks and surrounding environment.

    “Shell should compensate victims of the spreading crude oil. Payment should take into consideration individual and general damages”, the report said.

    The state government is also very unhappy with Shell’s handling of the incident. The Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Iniruo Wills, said the government was taking the massive pollution seriously. Wills said the government had sent a letter to Shell emphasizing the importance of immediately cleaning the impacted site.

    He also said that the management of Shell was invited to a meeting to discuss the development on Tuesday. But he regretted that the company did not show up.

    He said: “We are taking it seriously. We have written to ask them to ensure quick clean-up and containment of the area with the full involvement of the State Ministry of Environment and National Oil Spill Detection Response Agency (NOSDRA).

    “We also invited them for a meeting but they didn’t show up. So,we will proceed with some of the steps we have in mind to unfold.”

    The Spokesman of SPDC, Mr Joseph Obari, said at the weekend that the firm was yet to conduct a Joint Investigation Visit on the spill site.

     

  • Unending controversy over N800m Okpella Water Scheme

    Unending controversy over N800m Okpella Water Scheme

    Since Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomole spoke on the N800m Okpella Water Scheme, the Ministry of Water Resources has been running around to defend itself. The project is listed on page 126 of the publication titled Sure and Steady Transformation: Progress Report of President Goodluck Jonathan’s Administration. The Jonathan administration claimed it has completed the N800m project and listed it under ongoing projects of the Ministry of Water Resources. It reads, ‘Completion of Okpella Water Supply Scheme, Edo State-N800m.

    The publication was from the office of the Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Research, Documentation and Strategy, Oronto Douglas.

    Oshiomhole said the Federal Government lied over this project. The Federal Government earlier in the week said the project was ongoing. The Federal Government, at the weekend, said the Okpella water scheme in Edo State is an ongoing project.

    Edostate government last week accused the Federal Ministry of Water Resources of siphoning the N800 million meant for the project.

    The ministr’s Permanent Secretary, Mr. Istifanus Musa, in a statement in Abuja, said the water scheme had not been complted because of insufficient funds.

    He explained that the water scheme was listed among projects documented by the ministry at the inception of the Goodluck Jonathan administration for completion.

    The project was initially awarded by the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) in 1998 and later transferred to the ministry after the winding down of the PTF in 2000.

    •Okuokpellagbe of Okpella, HRH A.Y Dirisu
    •Okuokpellagbe of Okpella, HRH A.Y Dirisu

    He said: “The contract was initially awarded for N321,190,848.41,advance payment made by PTF was N157,860,865.74, certified works by PTF (supply of pipes and fittings) was N262,458,447.76 and the liabilities inherited by the Ministry was N104,597,582.04 . The Ministry has so far paid N60,000,000 .00.

    “The ministry under took  nationwide assessment of several abandoned project in the water sector, includng the Okpella Water Supply Project, which was estimated to cost N800,000,000 and documented them properly for completion by the Federal Government.

    “The project was later reviewed by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) to N789,934,486.00 in the 2011 to ensure its completion. However, due to funding constraints, the project was only provided for in the appropriation for 2012-2014 with the total releases of and payment of N60,000,000 only in 2012 and 2014.”

    Okpella clan is a border town between Edo and Kogi states. It sits atop several solid minerals, especially limestone. The huge deposits of limestone led to the establishment of the Edo Cement Factory that later become moribund but is now owned by the BUA Groups.

    The Okpella Water Scheme, according to documents obtained by this reporter, was supposed to be completed within six months after it was awarded in December 1998 at a cost of N346m by the Petroleum Trust Fund. A letter to the Military Administrator of Edo State and signed by Secretary to the Petroleum Trust Fund, late Chief Tayo Akpata, showed that the project was awarded in four lots to four different contractors.

    Messes Rotary Group Limited was awarded lot one which included Pipeline Network, Treatment and building of Pump house. Messrs SIBGA Services Limited was to supply the Generator and Power Supply. The elevated tanks were to be done by Messrs Johnson Steel Company while Messrs Galcon Engineering Company was awarded the contract to handle the civil works.

    The Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) led government under Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo scrapped the PTF in 1999 and the Okpella Water Scheme was transferred to the Ministry of Water Resources.

    Checks showed that all the materials for the project, including water supply pipes, pipes accessories and fittings, pumping machines, standby generator and transformer were supplied and the raw water house built. Tanks were also elevated.

    When our reporter visited Okpella, the transformer and power generator supplied by the contractor were seen at the palace of the Okuokpellagbe of Okpella, HRH Andrew Yusuf Dirisu. It was learnt that the traditional ruler took in the transformers and generator to avoid them being stolen.

    The Managing Director of Rotary Group, Alhaji Ja’faru Nuhu, in a chat with our reporter, said the project would have been completed within the stipulated time if Obasanjo had not stopped all PTF projects and transferred them to the Ministry.

    Ja’faru said he was owed a balance of N77m needed to complete the project which was at 60 per cent completion stage when PTF was scrapped. He said he wrote to the Ministry of Water Resources in 2009 on the need to pay the balance for the project to continue but was not paid.

    He said: “We were to start laying the pipes when Obasanjo stopped the project. Since then nobody has talked anything about it. I would have completed the project if the balance N77m were paid. I have been going to the Ministry for the past 15 years and no response.

    “In 2011, the project was reviewed upward to N789m but no money was released. I was surprised when we saw a publication that the project has been completed. We went to the ministry and they told us it was a mistake.”

    “You can imagine the price of dollar to the naira now and many of the things we supplied have been stolen. I was told that N150m meant for the project is in the 2015 budget; but whether that money will come out is another thing.”

    Vice Presidential Candidate of Action Alliance, Comrade Ishaka Paul Ofeimile, who led other community members on a tour to the project site, said the only thing done by the Jonathan presidency was to review the contract upward to N800m.

    Ishaka said more than 200 trailers were used to supply equipment to site only before Alhaji Abubakar Ibrahim showed up in 2008 and start removing the pipes and accessories with a claim that they were sold to him.

    According to him, “This is the source of water for Okpella water scheme, it used to be the quarry site for Bendel Cement Company now BUA group. Their activities resulted to the coming of this water. All year round there is water here. It is like a water table. This is where to get water to be supplied to the whole of Okpella. Even though mining activities is still on, it will not stop this flow instead more water will come out. During the rainy season it becomes dangerous to come here. They have built the pumping house. The only thing they have done is to supply the equipment. They have brought everything including the tanks, pipes, generator, and transformers. The tanks they installed in some places have been vandalised.

    abadon farm tools
    abadon farm tools

    “Unfortunately since 2008, one auctioneer, Alhaji Ibrahim Abubarkar, has been taking the pipes away. He claimed that they were sold to him. He comes here with soldiers and police and they start loading with cranes. In 2010, he removed nine fully loaded trailers of the pipes. We took him to the police headquarters but showed up two weeks ago and he brought armed soldiers. A retired soldier in this community stopped him. Our worry is that we don’t know who he said sold the pipes to him. The people he claimed sold the pipes to him have denied. Who is giving him power to sell the pipes we don’t know.”

    “In 2010, when we saw that this project has been completed for N800m, we went to Abuja to see the Minister. A director in the ministry said it was an on-going project. The director said they would soon mobilize the contractor. The only thing the federal government has done is to review this contract to N800m which needed only N77m to complete in 2001. Even after the revaluation not one kobo has been given to the contractor. If you see the progress report of President Jonathan, it is saying that N800m has been spent to complete this project. This project has been lying fallow since 2001. This is a big fraud. We don’t know who collected the money.”

     

    •’A structure at the site
    •’A structure at the site

    Chief Peter Ikiedeme Okun, the village head of Iyeshun in Okpella, said the project was abandoned because of corruption at the highest peak of governance in the country. He said forged documents were presented to enable them cart away materials meant for the water project. The treatment to Okpella is not good. It is unprecedented.”

    The Okuokpellagbe of Okpella said: “There is no water supply from the Okpella Water Scheme. We saw the publication and we went to Abuja. Nobody claimed to be aware of the author of the publication. It is clear the project is an ongoing project. It is not completed and there is no where N800m was spent.

    “The dam is supposed to provide water for the entire Ukpilla community. We get water now from individual boreholes and from good stream. The Federal Government should expedite action to make sure contractor comes to site and complete this project.”

    The President of the Okpella Youths, Otarru Gospel, accused some elders of the community of conniving with external factors to sell the materials meant for the water project.

    “There is no water in Okpella. We only a publication that water has been provided for Okpella. We saw where former Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, said that our water project has been completed and paid for.”

     

  • March 28… Niger Delta, Jonathan and sentiment

    By President  Goodluck Jonathan’s admission, Niger Delta has not benefitted anything special on the basis of his being the region of his birth. To the president and his handlers, it means he has been a leader for Nigerians and not the people of the Niger Delta. But not many in the region agree with him. Those who disagree with him feel that even on the scale of fairness, the region has not gained equally when compared with other geo-political zone. To this set of people, the president has been wicked to his people.

    In Otuoke, the sleepy Baylesa community where he hails from and spent the early parts of his life, his multistory mansion, which he built for himself and close family while in office, is the most impressive building there. The house is not far from the street where he grew up. The street remains a haven of rusting iron-roofed shacks.

    The school where he had part of his primary education was in a state of disrepair until The Nation did a number of reports on it, pointing attention to its terrible state. Now, it looks better, but not ‘presidential’.

    The community has Jonathan to thank for the Federal University Otuoke, which was completed in 2011. It has about 1,000 students. The teaching and non-teaching staff outnumbers the students. There community does not have light, neither does it have potable water. Not a few of the people of the community are disappointed that their status as kinsmen of the president has brought them neither water nor light. For sentiment sake, they will, however, still cast their votes for the president on March 28.

    The Amnesty Programme, which was started when Jonathan was Vice-president, may be another thing the region can point at as its benefits from Jonathan. He was not the country’s number one when it started but he has sustained it and many believe he had a hand in its design.

    Ex- militants, such as Ateke Tom, Mujahhid Asari-Dokubo and Government Ekpumopolo, have become multi-milionaires under Jonathan. They get lucrative pipeline surveillance contracts and got paid handsomely despite the fact that oil theft has gone up.

    Jonathan can also claim to have made sure  the highway the Bayelsa State capital, Yenagoa, connecting to the Rivers Sate capital, Port Harcourt, is now smooth.

    The region will, however, not forget in a hurry that Jonathan policies in power and farming have not benefited its people. The power sector privatisation has not led to more electricity supply for the people; neither has the people gained from the fertiliser scheme. Whatever gains have been recorded in the agric sector, Niger Delta cannot stand to be counted.

    The East-West Road is a project which the Jonathan administration has been unable to complete. Goal posts have been shifted many a time and no one is in doubt that the project will not be delivered during his first term in office. The incomplete status of this road means that people will continue to go through hell using it, especially during the rainy season.

    Dokubo-Asari, in an interview with Reuters, said whatever Jonathan’s faults are, he deserves to complete the region’s slot by being given a second term.

    His words: “He who pays the piper must dictate the tune, and the delta has been paying the piper for so very long. If they make war, we can make war. We have the capacity to take what’s ours.”

    Since blood is thicker than water, many in the region will still go with their man. Like Happiness Ebi, an indigene of Otuoke, told Reuters, despite their disappointment, “he’s our brother” and they will of course still vote for him.

    Ebi said: “We haven’t really seen much benefit since our brother became president, except the university… There’s no light, no water here. We’re disappointed.”

    Ex-militant leader Reuben Wilson  believes that “we have been oppressed, we have been sidelined, and we are the people feeding this country”. For this reason, he is ready to do battle to see their man back.

     

     

  • Obiano’s wife equips health Centre

    The challenges, once huge, are being surmounted. At Eziowelle, in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State, child-bearing was quite arduous. Some women delivered on a bench as the community health centre lacked everything it should not.

    Help has come, thanks to the wife of the state governor, Ebele Obiano who has provided facilities at the health facility.

    She promised to help last year. Now she has fulfilled her pledge, as she presented a power-driven delivery bed designed to provide support for the mother during delivery.

    The designed delivery bed  equally aids the nursing staff in the birthing process.

    The bed could be powered with electric to gain height and has back-rest adjustment which provides support for mother during labour.

    The women in the community were worried during Obiano’s wife first visit; even their visitor wept.  Five months later, the situation has changed.

    The joy of the women forced the local government chairman, Emmanuel Idemobi to declare that the council would take special care of the first child to be delivered on the new bed at the health centre.

    He thanked the governor’s wife for what he described as her latest gift of charity, adding that the support of the people for the governor, Chief Willie Obiano would never wane.

    The matron of Eziowelle health centre, Mrs. Monica Ekwealor told The Nation that the equipment donated to the centre by Obiano’s wife would be properly utilized.

    She commended her for keeping her promise of not allowing the sufferings of the less privileged women in the community to continue.

    On her part, Chief Ebelechukwu Obiano saw the donation as a natural reaction to what she saw on the ground when she visited the place last year.

    Mrs. Obiano said that she was sure that what she had done would go along way in ensuring safe delivery for women at the centre.

    She said, “I remember that when I came sometime in September 2014 one of your complaints that touched me was that your facilities have gone bad that you have to resorted to undertaking delivery of babies on a bench”.

    “It touched me because I felt that should not be happening in this century especially in our state”.

    “That is why I promised them a bed before and went ahead to procure a standard delivery bed, but didn’t find time to present it to them before now” she said.

    Furthermore, she told them that she was always touched by things concerning the welfare of children and women.

    This, she said, was made easy by her pet project, Caring Family Enhancement Initiative (CAFE), a non-profit, non-partisan outfit which has mandate to care for the less privileged and reduce the vulnerability of women and children.

     

  • Sustain peace, rector urges students

    The Acting Rector, Abia State Polytechnic, Aba Prof. Uche Ikonne has urged the newly elected leaders of the Student Union Government (SUG) of the institution to maintain peace and harmony between the management, staff and students of the polytechnic.

    At the inauguration of the union executives at his office, Ikonne urged the students leaders not to allow politicians to use them to cause unrest or any act capable of truncating the country’s democracy.

    Ikonne represented by the Deputy Rector, Administration, Elder Okpara Onyekwere  assured the new executive that the management of the polytechnic would support and cooperate with them in activities geared towards promoting the welfare of the students.

    He also urged them to seek clearance from the management on issues so as to be properly guided and to avoid running foul.

    Onyekwere used the opportunity to eulogize the immediate past regime for the peace and development recorded in the school during their tenure and expressed optimism that the incoming SUG would take after them.

    In his handover address, the former SUG President, Comrade Mbah Justice while enumerating some of their achievements, said “To maintain cleanliness within the campus, this administration initiated a project known as “Clean and Green Initiative” aimed at inculcating cleanliness… which has drastically reduced the number of dirt in the campus….

    “In course of my administration, we organized a lot of empowerment programmes that brightened the lives of our students. 34 students of this institution are in SACA pay role. 200 of our students are involved in HIV and AIDS sensitisation programme in and outside the campus.

    “This administration took it as a responsibility to train Anita Agwuoma Miracle whom we inherited from our predecessor as a toilet cleaner in the union. We observed that cleaning of the union toilets will do her good in the future; we purchased admission form for her, paid her acceptance fee and part-payment of her tuition fee. Sir, this is not part of our duty, but following our manifesto, we promised the students that efforts must be translated into something that can be seen)”.

    Justice however implored the incoming administration to consolidate and improve on what they have done, have the interest of the students that they have swore to represent at heart and to make sure that the position of the school management in the scheme of things was not neglected.

    Comrade Maxwell Eze, the incoming president of the Polytechnic Student Union Government promised to sustain the achievements of their predecessors, adding that they were going to work closely with the school management while they ensure that the sustenance of the entire students welfare remain their utmost priority.

    The acting rector, Abia State Polytechnic, Aba Prof. Uche Ikonne has charged the newly elected Student Union Government (SUG) Executive of the institution to maintain the existing peace and harmony between the management, staff and students of the polytechnic.

    Ikonne speaking when the newly constituted SUG was inaugurated in his office also charged the students body not to allow politicians that would come by to befriend and use them cause unrest or any act capable of truncating the country’s democratic as 2015 elections are by the corner

    Ikonne represented by the deputy rector administration, Elder Okpara Onyekwere while assuring the new executive that the management of the polytechnic would support and corporate with them in activities geared towards promoting the welfare of the students, urged them to seek clearance from the management on issues so as to be properly guided and to avoid running foul.

    Onyekwere used the opportunity to eulogize the out-gone regime for the peace and development recorded in the school during their tenure and expressed optimism that the incoming SUG would emulate their footsteps.

    In his handover address, the out-gone SUG President, Comrade Mbah Justice while enumerating some of their achievements said “To maintain cleanliness within the campus, this administration initiated a project known as “Clean and Green Initiative” aimed at inculcating cleanliness… which has drastically reduced the number of dirt in the campus….

    “In course of my administration, we organized a lot of empowerment programmes that brightened the lives of our students. 34 students of this institution are in SACA pay role. 200 of our students are involved in HIV and AIDS sensitization programme in and outside the campus.

    “This administration took it as a responsibility to train Anita Agwuoma Miracle whom we inherited from our predecessor as a toilet cleaner in the union. We observed that cleaning of the union toilets will do her good in the future; we purchased admission form for her, paid her acceptance fee and part-payment of her tuition fee. Sir, this is not part of our duty, but following our manifesto; we promised the students that efforts must be translated into something tangible (that can be seen)”.

    Justice however implore the incoming administration to consolidate and improve on what they have done, have the interest of the students that they have swore to represent at heart and to make sure that the position of the school management in the scheme of things was not neglected.

    Comrade Maxwell Eze, the incoming president of the Polytechnic Student Union Government promised to sustain the achievements of their predecessors, adding that they were going to work closely with the school management while they ensure that the sustenance of the entire students welfare remain their utmost priority.

     

  • Your brother is not my brother

    Your brother is not my brother

    There are brothers and there are brothers. Some brothers watch your back; others break your back. Ask some brothers to help you scratch your back and what you get is pain instead of peace. They will use knife to scratch peace out of your back instead of using their soft palm to soothe it.

    There are brothers who are ready to go to any extent to make you happy. There are others who will do all possible to ensure you do not smile. Somebody says they perhaps love you too much to see you smile. So much for love, I say. And I am quick to add, no brother, no cry.

    Since the beginning of the campaigns for the elections, especially the presidential arm of it, the word ‘brother’ has taken centre-stage. The first to use it, in the context relevant to this situation, was Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi. Others in the Southsouth have used it after that to describe their relationship with President Goodluck Jonathan.

    The Southsouth is where Jonathan hails from. His real root is in Otuoke, a settlement in Bayelsa State, where he was deputy governor and governor.

    Like Jonathan, the Ikwerre-born Amaechi is also from the Southsouth.  Amaechi has a sterling political history. He was Special Assistant; he was House of Assembly Speaker; and now, he is governor. He has been governor for about eight years. He is bowing out May 29.

    In his eight years as governor, Amaechi has had to relate with Jonathan on many an occasion. Their relationship was not sour. It was chummy. Then they called each other brother. Now, they no longer see eye to eye. Both are suspicious of the other. They belong to two different political parties, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is bent on sending Jonathan back to his mansion in Otuoke after May 29. Amaechi, as the Director-General of the Buhari Campaign Organisation, is doing all within his power to ensure his brother of yesterday is not re-elected. You need not ask him these days before he tells you that Jonathan is not his brother.

    Both gladiators used to belong to the PDP until Amaechi left to team up with the opposition to un-elect the man who was his brother. Their quarrel has led to so many ugly incidents. The House of Assembly is not the same again. The quarrel saw the deployment of Joseph Mbu to the state as police commissioner and almost all saw the disaster that was. The state’s judiciary is still bleeding. They have both reached the point of no return. It is either you triumph or you sink.

    On almost all the campaign rallies he has held for the urbane and civil APC governorship candidate in the state, Dr Dakuku Peterside, Amaechi has said it clearly that Jonathan cannot be his brother. He says your brother is someone who watches your back, but that Jonathan stabs his back. He cites the Soku oil wells, which have since been ceded to Bayelsa State as evidence that the president is not qualified to be his brother. A few days ago, he told the Kalabari people at a rally on their soil that Jonathan should not be seen as their brother. In clear terms, he said the president hated them. He gave examples of when he nominated two Kalabari sons, Tonye Cole and Odein Ajumogbobia, the exemplary and brilliant product of the University of Lagos, as ministers and they were rejected by Jonathan. He did not forget to tell them that the president also refused him the permission to fix a federal road which has become a source of pain to the Kalabari people.

    Another reason Amaechi does not see the president as his brother concerns the sixth train of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) plant in Finima, Bonny Island. The governor said he once spoke with the president on the need to allow the company proceed with the sixth train, but was told by his ‘brother’ that the project had to wait for the Brass LNG in the president’s home state to take off first. He wondered why Rivers has to wait for Bayelsa to develop.

    The governor is also sad that the president has been silent on the mayhem in Okrika, his wife’s hometown during an APC rally. Gunshots were exchanged between those who wanted the rally stopped and the police. At the end, a policeman died and a reporter with Channels Television, Charles Eruka, was stabbed. Some other policemen were also badly injured.

    Mr Anayo Onukwugha, a journalist working for Leadership in Port Harcourt, said he saw youths carrying AK-47 rifles, locally-made pistols, cutlasses and bottles.  They overpowered him and collected all they could lay their hands on in his pockets, including his two phones, a digital voice recorder and some cash.

    His colleague, Emeka Amaefula, the Bureau Chief of City Magazine, sustained abrasion on his sheen and waist and had an elbow inflammation.

    The president has said nothing on this. The police is investigating. Assistant Inspector-General of Police Tunde Ogunsakin is leading a team of detectives to unravel the mystery of who was behind the violence. So far, they have discovered items stolen from APC members in the hands of one of the three arrested in connection with the crime. Perhaps the president will speak when the police conclude the investigation. Or perhaps his own way of speaking was to secretly instruct Inspector General of Police Suleiman Abba to investigate the matter.

    Like they say, life is like a coin; the side it shows to you is not what it shows to the other. Amaechi’s one-time Chief of Staff, Chief Nyesom Wike, who is the PDP governorship candidate in Rivers, sees Jonathan as his brother and a friend to the people. Few days ago, he said the conflict over the Soku oil wells, one of the many sins Jonathan committed against Amaechi, would be resolved. But there is a condition attached to it: “If I become governor”. Some will ask why can’t it be resolved before April 11 when the governorship poll will hold or even before March 28 when Jonathan and Buhari will slug it out?

    To Wike, Amaechi is just painting the president black in order to hang him. The former Minister of State for Education says no president has done as much as Jonathan for the people of Rivers, especially in the area of education.

    The way things stand, it is now a matter of your brother is not my brother. Jonathan is the middle man here. To Amaechi, he is not a brother; to Wike, he is a dear brother in whom he is well-pleased.

    My final take: It is the fundamental right of every one to choose who his brother is. A brother is not just so called because the two of them are from the same mother or father or village or town or even zone.  Blood, social ties and political gains or losses can play a role in choosing someone as your brother or adversary. Whichever of these factors determine your choice is fair and good. But what is bad is taking the game to the level of senselessness where human lives are toyed with. God gives life and only God should take life. Don’t take what you can’t give. That is my humble plea.

     

     

  • ERA, others decline Bodo offer of compensation

    The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) and several civil society groups have turned down an offer of financial compensation from the Bodo community after defeating Shell in a landmark suit that has been in court since 2008 for which the company settled out of court for the sum of $84 million.

    The offer of compensation was turned down when ERA/FoEN, Oilwatch and Host Communities Network (HoCoN) visited the community to celebrate with them in Bodo, Rivers State, last week.

    ERA/FoEN has been the arrowhead of campaigns to get Shell to compensate the locals for two massive spills that occurred in 2008, depriving about 13,000 fish farmers their trade for five years.   The community maintained that Shell failed to carry out a proper cleaning of the environment after the incident, until the Dutch government intervened, which culminated in the initiation of talks between Shell and Bodo community on the cleanup process.

    Under the out of court settlement agreement, 11,500 persons will share the $84 million which Shell agreed to pay as compensation.

    ERA/FoEN Executive Director, Godwin Uyi Ojo said: “Today we are in celebratory mode. We wish to commend the Bodo people for their victory over Shell after six torturous years of twists and turns aimed at evading justice”.

    Ojo explained that while the sum remains paltry in the face of Shell’s assault on the environment and their livelihoods, the victory of the people would serve to galvanise other impacted people to also seek justice.

    Speaking with the community leaders, Ojo said that: “We applaud your courage. Shell would have preferred that the case remains in perpetuity until the community tires out, but your resilience in the face of such intimidating might forced the company’s hands”

    Further, he pointed out that the victory of the Bodo community over Shell is the victory for civil society and people in Nigeria and everywhere suffering from the activities of multinationals.

    Receiving the delegates, the Chairman of the Bodo Council of Chiefs, Chief Sylvester Kogbara explained that the struggle and victory against Shell could not have been possible if not for ERA/FoEN and other national and international organisations that were involved in fighting the company.

    “When we cried, you cried with us, and when we were weeping, you wept with us. You made our pains your pain. Whatever we have achieved today, ERA/FoEN was part of it. You are always here with us. A day of thanksgiving is coming and we will remember all you have put in and also compensate you.”

    Deputy paramount Ruler of Bodo City said: “We are very pleased with ERA/FoEN for coming to pay us an official visit today. The situation is not over, we need you to continue to fight for environmental justice with us because Shell is yet to begin clean up and restoration of the destroyed environment in Bodo.”

    Godwin Ojo thanked the council of chiefs and the Bodo people for their kind gesture to compensate ERA/FoEN but however said that ERA/FoEN will not take a penny and no civil society will no matter how much time and energy has been expended on pursuing the case.

    The highpoint of the celebration was the  opening up of a register of victims of Shell’s abuse at individual and community levels by ERA/FoEN after which victims were urged to come up for documentation and possible legal action against the company.

    In the words of Ojo: “Shell must not be allowed to escape from its human rights violations and environmental degradation of the Niger Delta.”