The Nation Newspaper

Category: Niger Delta

  • Who will hear the cry of Oron traders?

    Their market remains closed. Now, the road has become outlet to display their wares, mainly fishes and crayfish. This is the fate of the Assang Crayfish Market in Oron, Akwa Ibom State. They blamed the Navy for their woes.

    The market is just by the Oron beach and it is the economic nerve centre of Oro nation. It also surrounded by the office of the National Commission for Museum and Monuments. Crisis is brewing between the traders and the security operatives following the closure of the crayfish market.

    Not only the market was affected, even those in the business of water transport are currently counting their losses as their boats are not allowed to berth at the Oron beach.

    According to the Family Head of Idua Assang in Oron, where the Beach Market is located, Obong Edet Ekpong,  the occupation of Oron waters by the Navy began on September 9,  after a Navy official travelling from Oron to Calabar by boat was attacked and probably killed by sea pirates.

    Ekpong said: “I was in my house that morning when we learnt that the pirates attacked the boat conveying the naval official and took him away. I don’t know if he was killed but the driver of the boat jumped into water and escaped. Since then, we have not known peace.”

    The chief explained that after the attack on the boat conveying the Naval officer, Navy official arrived at the market shooting sporadically into the air while stopping all forms of business in the market and at the beach.

    He added: “We cannot be made to suffer for the failure of the security agencies and government of the day. This beach is the only source of livelihood of our people. So, we challenge the Navy to go and arrest the pirates and allow us do our business in peace. When our people were killed nobody did anything about it.”

    The traders claimed that after the closure of the market, they lodged complaint with the local government chairman Omar Esin but he has failed to come to the rescue of the traders by looking into the matter.

    “For instance during last week market, some of our people displayed their fish, crayfish and other items on the road, but we were not fortunate to conclude the business peacefully as rain came to destroy the goods. Those of us who have frozen food lost everything completely; so this is very sad and we want government at all levels to intervene so that we can continue our business.” The traders lamented.

    The traders urged government not to neglect the pirates attack because in their view the pirates are stealing so much money and could use that to acquire guns to attack the country.

    One of the traders said: “Don’t forget that not too long ago the pirates attacked the Police Marine Headquarters in Oron, carts away all the weapons and up till date no single ammunition has been recovered. This was how Boko Haram started and it was neglected. If this pirates who are cultists continue like this they may have so much money to buy weapons, train more cultists and become a threat to security in Nigeria.”

    When contacted, the Commander of the NNS-Jubilee, Commodore Joel Ogazi, declined to comment on the development, but directed our correspondent to visit him in the office.

    He said: “If you want to ask me anything about Oron. Please, come to my office.”

    One of the traders, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, condemned the Navy for the untold hardship.

    A source alleged that: “Initially, some people who claimed to be Navy personnel agents asked us to pay between N1, 000 and N500 because they had orders to give the Navy personnel N200, 000 if they would allow us to do business there. We paid the money and we were allowed to stay last week but this week they stopped us again.”

    The traders’ prayer is simply: allow us use the market withour fear or favour. It is not too much to ask.

  • Arogbo-Ibe Day… Ijaw festival of colour, music, dance and talks

    Arogbo-Ibe Day… Ijaw festival of colour, music, dance and talks

    For several reasons, including the presence of dignitaries, including Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson, Minister of Culture Edem Duke, Amnesty Programme Chairman Kingsley Kuku, Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari and Nollywood stars, this year’s Arogbo-Ibe Day will linger in the minds of sons and daughters of the Ijaw town for a long time to come, reports OLUKOREDE YISHAU

    It is day two. Friday was the first day of festivity. Time is some minutes past ten in the morning. It is Saturday, September 27. The speed boat berths at the jetty in Arogbo. It is a five-minute ride from Agadagba. The vegetaion and aura tell you this is simply Niger Delta in Ondo State.

    A first time visitor cannot but notice the floating NNPC filling station, which services the needs of boat engines.

    An old woman sprinkles water on those willing with palm front. It is said to be a purification exercise for people coming into the town. It makes you clean and whole! Non-indigenes dodge it though.

    It is immediately obvious the riverine Ijaw town is in festive mood. It is the Arogbo Day.

    Men, women, boys and girls are dressed specially. The town square is extra busy because of visitors that are expected to come in from other Ijaw enclaves in Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers and so on.

    It is soon obvious the town is a typical riverside community: few cars brought in through the sea; houses made of woods; a chunk of modern structures scattered like china wares; and women selling fresh or fried fishes.

    Solar-powered street lights line the concrete roads, which only came to be some months ago courtesy of the town’s most influential son, Kingsley Kemebradigha Kuku (K3), who is President Goodluck Jonathan’s Special Adviser on Niger Delta Affairs and Chairman, Presidential Amnesty Programme.

    Some years back, the nice shoes on feet would have been booths because the roads were marshy then. The concrete-slab roads are complete with culverts. The jetty also looks better than before. Few Niger Delta communities boast of these infrastructure. It is just unprecedented.

    Walls bear allegiance to the fact that the 2015 elections are here. Aspirants’ posters for House of Assembly and sundry positions adorn painted and unpainted walls.

    Ijaw songs blare out from giant speakers in a number of outstanding edifices.   A floating hotel also supplies music for whoever cares to listen.

    In a part of the town, canopies take over sizeable space on a road complete with chairs and a live band. On another street, hip hop songs blare out of giant speakers, with boys dancing their hearts out.

    At the river bank, the boat regatta starts around 1pm. Many gather to look at the regatta teams dressed in native attires singing and dancing to drums beaten by experienced Arogbo drummers. Women bear their kids to the river bank to witness the colourful display. Traditional rulers are not left out. They are here with their entourage to see the display by the regatta teams.

    Cheers break out from time to time when any of the team is seen to have performed spectacularly. The rain comes from time to time. But, the show continues.

    The regent and Tarabiritorhu of Arogbo Kingdom, His Highness Amos Sofiyea, takes a break from a programme to bear his mind about the festival. He says it is an opportunity for the people to come together and remember their culture and traditions. He adds that it affords them the opportunity to chart the way forward for the Ijaw Nation.

    His words: “It is a great day for Arogbo kingdom and its people. We come together to merry and also display our culture.”

    The views of the chairman of the Organising Committee, Kennedy Eperetei, are not so different.

    He says:”It is a day for our people to come together for us to remind ourselves about our culture and traditions. It also affords us the opportunity to meet people we have not seen for a long time.”

    It is soon time to talk about the ‘environmental terrorism’ afflicting the Niger Delta. A lecturer at the Lagos State University (LASU), Prof Didi Moro, gives a lecture on “Nigeria and the Question of Development in Coastal Niger Delta Areas”.  He takes the place of Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari. He has harsh words for the government which, he says, has failed to address the Niger Delta question over the years. He likens the failure to address this question as man’s inhumanity to man.

    Moro says efforts to develop the Niger Delta have fallen short of the people’s expectations, adding that interventionist efforts, such as Niger Delta River Basin Authority and the Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission (OMPADEC), have all failed. He urges the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to be more proactive, adding that until the Niger Delta is given its due, development remains a mirage.

    He wonders how development will come to the coastal communities when there are no roads and electricity.

    Moro queries why the coastal road that will link Lagos to the coastal areas of the Niger Delta in record time is not receiving the required attention.

    The Environmental Biology expert says the people drink water that can harm their health. He adds that diseases, such as cancer, can be contracted by drinking the water in almost all the coastal communities.

    Moro also says coastal communities lack tertiary institutions and have to go elsewhere to get educated.

    “The Niger Delta has not got its due from anybody. It has suffered enough alienation, enough deprivation and it is time for us to ask for what belongs to us without fear. We must ask for our right. Posterity will not be fair to us if we refuse to ask for our rights,” he concludes.

    After the lecture, the rain assume a frightening dimension. It pours on and on. But, the shows continues. As it rains, speakers react to the points in the lecture. Many dance to the Ijaw band’s rendition. One or two even dance inside the rain as if daring it to do its worst.

    One thing that keeps coming up during the ceremony is Kuku’s name. Speaker after speaker praise him for his efforts in developing the town.

    It all appears all has come to an end after the regent gives a closing remark.

    Asari’s arrival at some minutes to 5pm increases the tempo of the dance in the rain. Dressed in all white buba and sokoto and white slippers, he participates in the vigorous dance after exchanging pleasantries with a few on the high table and waving at others. His presence seems to encourage more to dare the rain. At this time, the rain means almost nothing again. It can as well go on for all they care. And then music goes on. Dance. Dance. Dance. And more dance. It seems no end in sight again. Then an all-night show in honour of a late Ijaw music icon, Bozimo, ensures day two rolls into day three, with music and dance and merriment.

     

    Last day

    The festival’s programme starts at 6am. Not even church can stop many from basking in the last day’s glory. The people are not in their Sunday best, but in their ceremonial best.

    Like at some point the day before, fireworks boom. You can mistake it for guns booming. It is all part of the celebration.

    The ogele procession sees women, men, boys and girls marked with white chalk on their faces and white scarfs on their foreheads circling the town. Others wear blue dresses and tie blue scarfs on their foreheads for the ogele procession. Some just do it with no specific kind of uniform, but with painted face. Another group even adds a band singing Christian hymns to their procession.

    The crowd the day before soon becomes a child’s play. Bayelsa Governor Seriake Dickson arrives with his entourage. Kuku receives them at the jetty and leads them through the water from Agadagba to Arogbo. He visits the palace of the regent and speaks about the Ijaw people.

    His words: “This Arogbo day celebration is very unique and I am here to underscore the importance of our culture, the need to continue to strive  and uphold our culture and preserve our land. I am happy with what is happening in Arogbo. I came here to express our appreciation of what Arogbo kingdom is doing, ensuring that the tradition of our land is preserved  even in this environment that they have been staying for 100 of years. This is a fast developing community and as I said earlier, Arogbo-Ibe needs more support from all levels of government.

    “ I shall take it up with my friend and brother, the governor of Ondo state, Governor Olusegun Mimiko and I can assure the people of Arogbo that other government agencies will  also come in. There are lots of  things that Arogbo-Ibe can do better. There is a lot of determination on their part, a lot of good things are happening here and with what my younger brother, Kingsley Kuku is doing, I believe working with him, I think we can do better. Arogbo-Ibe needs more support and we will surely live up to expectation whenever we are called upon.”

    Minister of Culture Edem Duke soon comes in and stays till the night to participate in the award night.

    Duke says: “Warm greetings from President Jonathan who would have loved to be in Arogbo personally but for the 54th independence anniversary church service holding in Abuja today. He wanted me to represent him here not only because I’m  the Minister of Culture or because I am going to a territory where tradition has become a lasting heritage of a proud Arogbo Nation. For me, more importantly, it is a home coming because as some of you will know, thirty six years ago, I was a teacher in Ondo State. Therefore, for me to come to this wonderful kingdom and meet these wonderful people and faces, in fact, in the whole of Nigeria, I don’t think we can have as many beautiful women as much as I have seen in Arogbo today.

    I salute the women, mothers and youths. Let me reiterate  that the president of the biggest black nation of the face of the earth is an Ijaw man. Upon becoming President, the biggest problem confronting him  was solving the problem of the Niger Delta youths and of all the 170 million Nigerians that are resident in Nigeria and over 20 million that are resident outside Nigeria, he found a worthy son from Arogbo kingdom to perform this onerous task. I think it is a matter of pride to Arogbo. Mr President has equally asked me to tell you people that one of the greatest success this administration has recorded is to have used Kuku to solve the challenges of the Niger Delta. Today, many youths of the Ijaw nation have traveled far and wide to places, such as U.S.A, Japan, Britain, Malaysia courtesy of the Amnesty Office headed by Kingsley Kuku.  There is no where on the face of the earth that Kingsley Kuku has not facilitated the visitation of the Niger Delta people. Therefore, it is proper that we celebrate this young man. A man of  dignity, courage, passion  and a humble Arogbo young man. I salute you on behalf of Nigeria and on behalf of the Mr President on the historic recognition by your community.”

    The award night also sees Nollywood stars, such as the President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Ibinabo Fiberesima, Victor Osuagwu, Patience Ozokwo and others, identifying with the Arogbo people. Ace comedian Julius Agwu also witnesses the event.

    By the people’s admission, this year’s festival is one like no other and will forever linger in their memories. But, with a son like Kuku, next year’s festival may even be better. Who knows what magic in terms of infrastructure will be added by then?

    t is day two. Friday was the first day of festivity. Time is some minutes past ten in the morning. It is Saturday, September 27. The speed boat berths at the jetty in Arogbo. It is a five-minute ride from Agadagba. The vegetaion and aura tell you this is simply Niger Delta in Ondo State.

    A first time visitor cannot but notice the floating NNPC filling station, which services the needs of boat engines.

    An old woman sprinkles water on those willing with palm front. It is said to be a purification exercise for people coming into the town. It makes you clean and whole! Non-indigenes dodge it though.

    It is immediately obvious the riverine Ijaw town is in festive mood. It is the Arogbo Day.

    Men, women, boys and girls are dressed specially. The town square is extra busy because of visitors that are expected to come in from other Ijaw enclaves in Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers and so on.

    It is soon obvious the town is a typical riverside community: few cars brought in through the sea; houses made of woods; a chunk of modern structures scattered like china wares; and women selling fresh or fried fishes.

    Solar-powered street lights line the concrete roads, which only came to be some months ago courtesy of the town’s most influential son, Kingsley Kemebradigha Kuku (K3), who is President Goodluck Jonathan’s Special Adviser on Niger Delta Affairs and Chairman, Presidential Amnesty Programme.

    Some years back, the nice shoes on feet would have been booths because the roads were marshy then. The concrete-slab roads are complete with culverts. The jetty also looks better than before. Few Niger Delta communities boast of these infrastructure. It is just unprecedented.

    Walls bear allegiance to the fact that the 2015 elections are here. Aspirants’ posters for House of Assembly and sundry positions adorn painted and unpainted walls.

    Ijaw songs blare out from giant speakers in a number of outstanding edifices.   A floating hotel also supplies music for whoever cares to listen.

    In a part of the town, canopies take over sizeable space on a road complete with chairs and a live band. On another street, hip hop songs blare out of giant speakers, with boys dancing their hearts out.

    At the river bank, the boat regatta starts around 1pm. Many gather to look at the regatta teams dressed in native attires singing and dancing to drums beaten by experienced Arogbo drummers. Women bear their kids to the river bank to witness the colourful display. Traditional rulers are not left out. They are here with their entourage to see the display by the regatta teams.

    Cheers break out from time to time when any of the team is seen to have performed spectacularly. The rain comes from time to time. But, the show continues.

    The regent and Tarabiritorhu of Arogbo Kingdom, His Highness Amos Sofiyea, takes a break from a programme to bear his mind about the festival. He says it is an opportunity for the people to come together and remember their culture and traditions. He adds that it affords them the opportunity to chart the way forward for the Ijaw Nation.

    His words: “It is a great day for Arogbo kingdom and its people. We come together to merry and also display our culture.”

    The views of the chairman of the Organising Committee, Kennedy Eperetei, are not so different.

    He says:”It is a day for our people to come together for us to remind ourselves about our culture and traditions. It also affords us the opportunity to meet people we have not seen for a long time.”

    It is soon time to talk about the ‘environmental terrorism’ afflicting the Niger Delta. A lecturer at the Lagos State University (LASU), Prof Didi Moro, gives a lecture on “Nigeria and the Question of Development in Coastal Niger Delta Areas”.  He takes the place of Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari. He has harsh words for the government which, he says, has failed to address the Niger Delta question over the years. He likens the failure to address this question as man’s inhumanity to man.

    Moro says efforts to develop the Niger Delta have fallen short of the people’s expectations, adding that interventionist efforts, such as Niger Delta River Basin Authority and the Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission (OMPADEC), have all failed. He urges the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to be more proactive, adding that until the Niger Delta is given its due, development remains a mirage.

    He wonders how development will come to the coastal communities when there are no roads and electricity.

    Moro queries why the coastal road that will link Lagos to the coastal areas of the Niger Delta in record time is not receiving the required attention.

    The Environmental Biology expert says the people drink water that can harm their health. He adds that diseases, such as cancer, can be contracted by drinking the water in almost all the coastal communities.

    Moro also says coastal communities lack tertiary institutions and have to go elsewhere to get educated.

    “The Niger Delta has not got its due from anybody. It has suffered enough alienation, enough deprivation and it is time for us to ask for what belongs to us without fear. We must ask for our right. Posterity will not be fair to us if we refuse to ask for our rights,” he concludes.

    After the lecture, the rain assume a frightening dimension. It pours on and on. But, the shows continues. As it rains, speakers react to the points in the lecture. Many dance to the Ijaw band’s rendition. One or two even dance inside the rain as if daring it to do its worst.

    One thing that keeps coming up during the ceremony is Kuku’s name. Speaker after speaker praise him for his efforts in developing the town.

    It all appears all has come to an end after the regent gives a closing remark.

    Asari’s arrival at some minutes to 5pm increases the tempo of the dance in the rain. Dressed in all white buba and sokoto and white slippers, he participates in the vigorous dance after exchanging pleasantries with a few on the high table and waving at others. His presence seems to encourage more to dare the rain. At this time, the rain means almost nothing again. It can as well go on for all they care. And then music goes on. Dance. Dance. Dance. And more dance. It seems no end in sight again. Then an all-night show in honour of a late Ijaw music icon, Bozimo, ensures day two rolls into day three, with music and dance and merriment.

    Last day

    The festival’s programme starts at 6am. Not even church can stop many from basking in the last day’s glory. The people are not in their Sunday best, but in their ceremonial best.

    Like at some point the day before, fireworks boom. You can mistake it for guns booming. It is all part of the celebration.

    The ogele procession sees women, men, boys and girls marked with white chalk on their faces and white scarfs on their foreheads circling the town. Others wear blue dresses and tie blue scarfs on their foreheads for the ogele procession. Some just do it with no specific kind of uniform, but with painted face. Another group even adds a band singing Christian hymns to their procession.

    The crowd the day before soon becomes a child’s play. Bayelsa Governor Seriake Dickson arrives with his entourage. Kuku receives them at the jetty and leads them through the water from Agadagba to Arogbo. He visits the palace of the regent and speaks about the Ijaw people.

    His words: “This Arogbo day celebration is very unique and I am here to underscore the importance of our culture, the need to continue to strive  and uphold our culture and preserve our land. I am happy with what is happening in Arogbo. I came here to express our appreciation of what Arogbo kingdom is doing, ensuring that the tradition of our land is preserved  even in this environment that they have been staying for 100 of years. This is a fast developing community and as I said earlier, Arogbo-Ibe needs more support from all levels of government.

    “ I shall take it up with my friend and brother, the governor of Ondo state, Governor Olusegun Mimiko and I can assure the people of Arogbo that other government agencies will  also come in. There are lots of  things that Arogbo-Ibe can do better. There is a lot of determination on their part, a lot of good things are happening here and with what my younger brother, Kingsley Kuku is doing, I believe working with him, I think we can do better. Arogbo-Ibe needs more support and we will surely live up to expectation whenever we are called upon.”

    Minister of Culture Edem Duke soon comes in and stays till the night to participate in the award night.

    Duke says: “Warm greetings from President Jonathan who would have loved to be in Arogbo personally but for the 54th independence anniversary church service holding in Abuja today. He wanted me to represent him here not only because I’m  the Minister of Culture or because I am going to a territory where tradition has become a lasting heritage of a proud Arogbo Nation. For me, more importantly, it is a home coming because as some of you will know, thirty six years ago, I was a teacher in Ondo State. Therefore, for me to come to this wonderful kingdom and meet these wonderful people and faces, in fact, in the whole of Nigeria, I don’t think we can have as many beautiful women as much as I have seen in Arogbo today. I salute the women, mothers and youths. Let me reiterate  that the president of the biggest black nation of the face of the earth is an Ijaw man. Upon becoming President, the biggest problem confronting him  was solving the problem of the Niger Delta youths and of all the 170 million Nigerians that are resident in Nigeria and over 20 million that are resident outside Nigeria, he found a worthy son from Arogbo kingdom to perform this onerous task. I think it is a matter of pride to Arogbo. Mr President has equally asked me to tell you people that one of the greatest success this administration has recorded is to have used Kuku to solve the challenges of the Niger Delta. Today, many youths of the Ijaw nation have traveled far and wide to places, such as U.S.A, Japan, Britain, Malaysia courtesy of the Amnesty Office headed by Kingsley Kuku.  There is no where on the face of the earth that Kingsley Kuku has not facilitated the visitation of the Niger Delta people. Therefore, it is proper that we celebrate this young man. A man of  dignity, courage, passion  and a humble Arogbo young man. I salute you on behalf of Nigeria and on behalf of the Mr President on the historic recognition by your community.”

    The award night also sees Nollywood stars, such as the President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Ibinabo Fiberesima, Victor Osuagwu, Patience Ozokwo and others, identifying with the Arogbo people. Ace comedian Julius Agwu also witnesses the event.

    By the people’s admission, this year’s festival is one like no other and will forever linger in their memories. But, with a son like Kuku, next year’s festival may even be better. Who knows what magic in terms of infrastructure will be added by then?

  • When blessing brings tears

    When blessing brings tears

    •Triplets’ father’s cry for help 

    Godswill Echenim, father of ‘detained’ triplets, is a free and happy man. His wife who was delivered of a set of triplets, nine weeks ago at a private hospital in Asaba, has been set free by the hospital authorities conditionally.

    Nevertheless, Echenim, a native of Owa-Aliero, Ika North-East Local Government Area, is to pay the balance N500, 000 medical bills by the year end, but without a job and three children and a wife to feed, he faces an uphill task.

    Echenim said the birth of the triplets brought immense relief to him as his virility was in doubt after his marriage remained fruitless for over five years.

    With wet eyes, Echenim recalled how people made snide remarks about his childlessness, adding that he wept profusely upon hearing the babies cry in the labour ward.

    His words: “I am very happy. In the labour ward, when the nurses brought out the first baby, it was crying. And the second baby was also crying, but when the third baby came out, I burst into tears. People asked what moved me to tears, but they thought it was because I did not have money. I cried because the joy in me was indescribable. My kinsmen had started talking about our childless state, they wondered that I had been married over five years ago and still no baby. This birth gives me great joy because I am now a man.”

    He praised God for performing a miracle with the birth of his triplets, adding that he was almost becoming the laughing stock of the community.

    His words: “I want to thank God for the public that are responding to our request .We have been discharged from the hospital .I was asked to bring a surety to guarantee repay my debt to them. I will pay the money in instalments until December 31. I was able to gather N200, 000 as down payment before the man allowed us to go.”

    He expressed appreciation to public spirited individuals who have responded to his appeal, stressing some have paid various sums of money into his bank account.

    Despite the fact that the hospital authorities had earlier held on to his family, he had kind words for the medical director of the clinic whom he said offered N50,000 rebate on the N723,100 medical bills.

    He said,’ the hospital authorities   assisted my wife and babies in no small measure because long after birth they allowed use facilities at the hospital free. The owner of the clinic offered a rebate of N50, 000 from the medical bills to assist me and I am very grateful to the man. He is a kind hearted person. But I still need public support in taking care of my family and meet the balance payment as promised’.

    Despite the fact that he has his children safe in his custody in Owa-Aliero Community, Echenim is a worried man. He worries that he may be unable to cater for his family, adding that feeding and procuring drugs for his children is difficult.

    He said: “I am worried because I am unemployed. First, I am worried about my inability to feed three babies including mother .The triplets are eating a lot of food .I have just received a call a few minutes ago that one of them is crying and that I need to buy drugs. As I speak with you I have only N1000 in my pocket. I am still appealing to kind hearted people to help financially.

    Continuing: “I have started buying food for them and they take a full can of baby cereal in three days. We buy diapers for N1500.00 which lasts for just three days. This is besides the drugs we have been buying. It is just too much for us, we need help from the public.”

    He added: “I was foretold that my wife had triplets by the physicians but all the money I gathered was spent on visits to Asaba for antenatal care at FMC. I registered her at Agbor Central Hospital and another private clinic also in   Agbor. Had the doctors strike been called off early I would have been able to get medical help at subsidised rate from a government owned hospital.“

    Echenim admitted that donations have dried up lately, but is hopeful that more persons will heed his call for financial assistance and send money into his UBA account- 2062282848 Echenim Onyemakonor Godswill.

  • Community banks on ‘Juju’ to get compensation from oil company

    Community banks on ‘Juju’ to get compensation from oil company

    Seven families in Idoke Community, Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State have said they would place ‘juju’ on their land to make Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited (TEPNL) to pay them compensation for polluting their land through oil spillage.

    The families are: Umudoka; Umuoke; Umuoga; Ukpeli; Inyekirinye; Aganume and Agbozorku. They said that they decided on this after all efforts to get TEPNL to clean up their land and pay them compensation have failed.

    To their utter chagrin, the company has decided to play a divide-and-rule-game with them, thus pushing them to the wall.

    The lawyer to the aggrieved families, John Idoko, who disclosed this to Niger Delta Report, also lamented that: “TEPNL has created opportunity for people to resort to this means to get what should have been amicably resolved in-house without the outside world knowing of it.”

    Trouble started when an oil spill occurred from the company’s facility at Obagi Rumuekpe Pipeline OML 58 Kilometer 25 sometime in July last year.

    The people said they expected TEPNL to wade in immediately and control crude oil from flowing into their adjoining farmlands, but the company looked the other side thus resulting to a situation whereby their land and water were polluted, killing economic plants as well.

    Despite this huge damage, the company did not come to the people’s rescue, thus prompting them to write the company and the Rivers State Ministry of Environment on August 14, 2013 to call their attention to the devastation in the land.

    That same day, their estate surveyor and valuer, Mike Nwogu and Partners also wrote both the ministry and TEPNL on the incident as well as the need to pay the people compensation for their polluted land.

    On September 4, the Ministry of Environment wrote TEPNL to come for a Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) with a view to knowing how to solve the matter, but the company shunned this meeting.

    Subsequently, on October 10, last year, the people wrote again through their lawyer, Idoko asking for clean up and compensation to be paid to his clients as a result of the oil spillage which he claimed resulted from obsolete pipelines that were laid before the outbreak of the Nigerian civil war.

    Since TEPNL did not respond, Idoko wrote again on November 12, yet nothing was heard from the company. He fired another letter to the company on November 26, asking for the same clean up and compensation.

    All these representations by the people to get TEPNL to hearken to their demands appeared like water poured on rock.

    This was why on Wednesday September17, 2014, they decided to carry placards and palms to the gate of the multinational oil company in Port Harcourt to protest against the negligence they have suffered.

    Some of the messages on their placards read: “Total Oil Company; Ready to Terminate the Entire Idoke Community because of Oil”; “Do we have Right to Life? Our Right to Life is Under Serious Threat by TEPNL”; Imperialist TEPNL Remove Your Oil Deluge on our Land” and Deaf and Dumb TEPNL, Can You Do This To French People?”

    The Leader of the protesting Idoke families, Chief Messiah Okpeze said that day, that they staged the protest “because we have written them since August 14, 2013 on the spillage but they have not done anything.

    “We have made several representations, yet they failed to respond. They later claimed that they have been dealing with one fake man who is not from our community and the man,  Mr Odum is now late.

    “So what we are doing today is to let the whole world know how they have been treating us.”

    The Manager, Community Relations of TEPNL, Mr Tolos Isaiah who came out to address the people merely, said:  “It’s a family affair. We will settle it.”

    Isaiah also expressed displeasure with the aggrieved people for coming to the company’s gate to demonstrate.

    The Deputy General Manager Community Affairs, Mr Iduoku Izu; the Manager Lands and Claims, Mr Chile Izim; Isaiah  and four others, including the company’s lawyer and Idoko, were in attendance.

    Both Okpeze and Idoko disclosed that during the meeting, TEPNL admitted that the spill occurred from their equipment failure, which made crude to go into the land.

    While promising to pay the people compensation, they also claimed that they have done the clean up “but we have not done the remediation because we are waiting for approval”.

    The representatives of the aggrieved families disputed this claim and at the end, the two sides agreed to meet again on September 19 to resolve the matter amicably.

    Though the meeting held, Idoko the company barred from attending .

    Idoko told Niger Delta Report: “I can deduce that the representatives of the company have vested interest; that is why they want to sabotage the people’s efforts.

    “The people have held meeting saying that they will disown whosoever that goes to TEPNL to collect money on their behalf without their consent because they have discovered that those who do not own the land are being used.”

  • In Bayelsa, Miss Ekeremor holds the olive branch

    In Bayelsa, Miss Ekeremor holds the olive branch

    If you think that the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (MBGN) pageant is the most colourful pageant in the country, it means you have yet to attend the Miss Peace Bayelsa Beauty (MPBB) pageant.

    Miss Peace Bayelsa show, indeed, has all the trappings and features of any globally-acclaimed beauty show and more. It is laced with a good dose of Bayelsa’s rich cultural heritage and spiced with local performances in comedy, music and dance. It is, in fact, an all-round entertainment package.

    Undoubtedly, the crowd that trooped into the Banquet Hall, Yenagoa on Sunday, to attend the third edition of the yearly event, which is always  organised by Providence Global Resources Entertainment Limited (PGR) were not disappointed. They beamed with smiles as they watched the show.

    In fact, the audience also understood the significance of the pageant. It is not a mere show. It is tied to the past, future and progress of the state. It is part if the events used to commemorate the Bayelsa Peace Day, the day that signifies the end of militancy in the state.

    Before the administration of Governor Seriake Dickson, the Bayelsa Peace Day was celebrated every August 22 to mark the historic August 22, 2009 when militant leaders from the state embraced the amnesty declared by the late President Musa Yar’Adua and gathered at the Peace Park, Yenagoa, to submit their arms.

    The disarmament ended hostilities in the state and by extension the Niger Delta region. To remember that day, the state pronounced August 22 a work-free day and instituted a carnival to mark it.

    The festivity used to attract all the ex-militant leaders such as Mr. Ebikabowei Victor Ben popularly known as Field Marshall Boyloaf, Eris Paul (Oguboss), Pastor Reuben, General Africa and many others.

    But since he came on board, Dickson has failed to mark the Peace Day, a situation that is creating a bad blood between him and the ex-militant leaders.

    Despite the alleged deliberate move by Dickson’s administration to “kill” the historic day, the Chief Executive Officer, PGR Entertainment, Mr. Seleipre Tonbie, has continued to host Miss Peace Bayelsa beauty pageant, one leg of the Bayelsa Peace Day.

    MPBB is designed to produce a Miss peace, an amiable peace-loving young woman who will help to advance and sustain the hard-earned peace in the state of President Goodluck Jonathan. So, 17 pretty and sexy contestants selected from different parts of the state lined up for this year’s show.

    The hall came alive with music and rib-cracking comedies. There was no dull moment for the crowd who applauded heavily and sometimes shouted ecstatically to appreciate the performances of array of artistes paraded at the event.

    A group of dancers, the Genesis, from Port-Harcourt with energetic, unique and varied dance steps added ‘swag’ to the occasion. Funny Efizy and MC Aproko were among the rising comedians that drew laughter from the audience.

    Then came the girls. Their first outing on the stage sent the audience standing in applause. They danced harmoniously shaking and twisting themselves to a well-rehearsed song formulated to suit the event.

    From their first outing, their catwalk to the point where they appeared in their traditional costumes, the picture of those that would make the top 10 became clearer. Not quite long, the judges battled and trimmed the number of the contestants to 10. The number was further reduced to five after the brains of the girls were tested with some questions revolving around peace.

    Miss Brass, Miss Ekeremor, Miss Kolo Creek, Miss Alabini and Miss Sagbama made the top five. Expectations grew higher as the audience raised their voices for their favourite contestants.

    In fact, there was no doubt in the minds of the audience when the judges came out with their final verdict and declared, Rebecca Hampson (Miss Ekeremor), the 2014 Miss Peace in Bayelsa. She walked home with a brand new car.

    She is also to represent Nigeria at the Miss Peace International which is to hold in Lebanon later n the year. In addition, she is to enjoy an all-expense paid luxury trip to Dubai alongside the first runner up Miss Brass who also walked home with N300,000. The trip is sponsored by the owner of Afrinun Oil and Gas and former ex-militant leader, General Africa.

    The judges also declared, Deborah Diafa (Miss Alabani), the third runner up and best in cat walking. She is to head for Johannesburg in South Africa to attend the Fashion week; spend four nights at the Michael Angelo Hotel and to get a customised Chelsea shirt signed by Diego Costa. The trip is to be sponsored by the owner of Monimichelle Sports Construction Company, Mr. Ebi Egba.

    Moreover, the second runner up, Lucy Cassandra (Miss Kolo Creek), was rewarded with N200,000.

    Immediately Miss Ekeremor was announced the winner, her mother and sibling created a spectacle. They shouted in joy, ran round the hall, fell and rolled many times. Tears of joy rolled down their cheeks, amazed at the life-changing moment.

    The organiser of the event, Tonbie, the Miss Peace Bayelsa Beauty Pageant is aimed at creating new role models that will serve as an ambassador of peace and enhance a new strength, energy and spirit to advance peace in the state and Niger Delta region.

    He recalled: “The Niger Delta region was engulfed in hostilities induced by decades of undeserved official neglect. Although the main base of national health, the communities in the region still rank top in the list of underdeveloped communities in the country. These and other fundamental reasons led to arms struggle.

    “However, late Umaru Yar’Adua took the bull by the horn in the region by granting amnesty to militants in the region, thereby opening a new chapter of intellectual dialogue.

    “Women and children were mostly the unfortunate victims of the conflicts because of the circumstances beyond their control. The best way to prevent them is to promote healthy and balanced economic and social development in an atmosphere of peace.

    “A complete success and sustainable peace building is a function of youth participation. The seeds of tolerance must first be sown right into the minds of children as they grow old. Let us nurture in them respect for existence of individuals of whatever region or ethnic group, nation, gender, colour or socio-economic standard or political belief”.

    Tonbie said women were selected to participate in the competition because they are always viewed as the victims of war that should carry the message of peace.

    He regretted the nonchalant attitude of the state government to local events wondering why the state tourism agency refused to partake in the Miss Peace event. He lamented that instead of encouraging local programmes, the present administration was busy sponsoring national and international events.

    “The government should think twice. They have hosted the Most Beautiful

    Girl in Nigeria beauty pageant, the international fashion week and other global events, yet they have refused to identify with local events. The ministry of tourism should think twice and support local events”, he said.

    He added: “At PGR Entertainment, our ideology is the knowledge that peace is not a mere absence of war, but a virtue  that springs from the force of character. Therefore, the promotion of peace through the emulation of acceptable character representation becomes pertinent via pageantry which showcases young intelligent, talented, creative and beautiful females who believe in their contributions to societal awakening and growth.”

    Some dignitaries such as the member representing Kolokuma-Opokuma Constituency 1, Mr. Tonye Isenah;  a popular ex-militant leader, General Africa  and founder of Monimichelle Sports Construction Facility Company, Mr. Ebi Egba, graced the occasion.

  • The trouble with Niger Delta, by Eradiri

    The trouble with Niger Delta, by Eradiri

    In this interview with MIKE ODIEGWU, the President of Ijaw Youth Congress (IYC), Mr. Udens Eradiri, laments lack of development in the Niger Delta region, identifies the problems and proffers solutions. 

    Can  you rate Niger Delta delegates in the just-concluded National Conference?

     

    Some were very outstanding. Our own Ankio Briggs was very outstanding. We commend her. Pa E.K. Clark; I have never seen a man like this. The kind of work he does and the kind of strength he has is wonderful. You would see that people younger than him would be sleeping, but Pa E.K. Clark at his age never missed one sitting and his eyes would be shinning till the end of the discussion.  Pa E.K. Clark would still go home and host meeting till the following morning and he would still be in the house without closing his eyes. I have never seen a man like this. I think he needs to be commended.

    Sometimes, we were not happy about the way things were going but it was a house filled with different characters. As the President of IYC, I was not expecting them to get 100 per cent resource control. You see when you are in the agitation field, whatever comes, hold it so that you can use it to consolidate in the next level.  It may be a mirage to think that I will have 100 per cent resource control today. It may not happen in my life time but let it be that I contributed to the process of getting to the 100 per cent  and  whatever comes out of that process. We went there with 13 per cent and I am sure we are coming out with more. This will further consolidate us at our various levels and in the next point of our agitation, we will be moving until we get to where we are going to. For me, our people did well, apart from a few of them who played master-boy relationship in the house.

     

    Who are these people? I mean the Niger Delta delegates you said played master-servant relationship.

     

    We will not at this point mention names because at the end of the day, they did well and it became a team work. They did not come home with an empty bag. It is now left for the president to consolidate on the report given to him by the committees that had been put in place. It must see the light of the day. Let it not end on the shelf as it usually does. Our people have done their beat, it is now left for the president to consolidate on it; come out with a blueprint for the implementation of the report. But for us, we will continue to agitate for 100 per cent resource control. We will use what we have to get what we want.

     

    Did the Southsouth governors really play their part during the conference compared to their counterparts from the North?

     

    This brings us to the issue of unity. The Southsouth governors are not united. In such an important discuss, you saw how the North were consolidating. Pa E.K. Clark took up the leadership and was doing his best. I don’t know what the Southsouth governors were doing on their part to further consolidate.  But, the posture they presented was not encouraging. On individual levels, some of them tried. But, they should have been seen as a united force supporting the delegates where there were conflicts and bringing them together.

    Even when the delegates were bringing feedback, some of these governors were not there. But in the north when the delegates went back for feedback, you see their governors, reviewing the process. In IYC, we were reviewing every week what was going on like some of the governors. The Bayelsa governor was involved in the process because I know that meetings were held in his place in Abuja. But like I said the governors would have done better assuming they are united.

     

    Niger Delta is still lagging behind in almost all the sectors despite the attention the area has attracted in recent times. What is the way forward?

     

    In fact, this is the reason why the IYC has decided to organise a youth summit so as to set agenda for young people in the Niger Delta. For me as the leader of all the youths from Ijaw extraction, I believe that we are lagging behind in many areas and in order to champion a new cause,  we need to bring people together, bring international society together, bring other ethnic society, professionals to the table so that we can x-ray these issues  and proffer solutions to these issues. We need to cross-pollinate ideas with other people and see how we can be a better IYC and prosperous Niger Delta going forward.

    The summit would have been held, but we discovered that some of our key participants would not be around on the day we selected. We had to postpone it. We don’t want to organise a summit and do not get the targeted audience required. We know that the youths will be fully mobilised any day we call for the summit. But, they are not the only ones we want. We want the professionals and the political class to also be involved. So, we shifted the summit to on the 9th of October 2014.

     

    How will this summit solve the problems of unemployment, lack of development and myriads of other problems still facing the region?

     

    Now, we have realised that if we must move forward, then we must go back to agriculture. With agriculture, we don’t need rocket science. Agriculture has gone technological. So, you need certain partners to support you. Some of you are talking here today because our grandparents trained our parents through farms that they all had. Those days, secondary school used to have farms. When I was in primary school, we used to have farms.

    What I am saying is that the richest nations in the world are agro-based nations. We cannot continue to rely so much on oil revenue when we have the potential to create wealth with agriculture as young people. These days young people beg too much on the streets. Many of them are begging for work when there is work already staring them in the face.

    So, we felt that in a summit like this, we will make agriculture the basis for discussion. We want young people to organise themselves and go back to the farm and I believe that at the end of this summit the framework will be put in place to relate with government, Bank of Industries, Bank of Agriculture and other institutions to harness the energy of young people. This energy we are using to kidnap; this energy we are using for criminality; this energy we are using to walk the streets and beg, let us channel this energy to the farms, to agriculture and see where we will be in the next six months or one to five years.

     

    Why are you talking about agriculture, which involves hard work when you know that the present generation of youths, especially from the Niger Delta, is looking for easy money?

     

    Well, as for me, I don’t think the youths have an option here because first of all leaders brought this laziness among the young ones. I don’t believe that young people are not ready to work. All they need is leadership and direction and discipline from the leaders. If the leadership is disciplined, and say, this is how I want it to be, you will see that a greater percentage of the youths will follow. Others who will be docile initially after seeing how their colleagues are following and achieving results, will also join.

    I will give you an example with the Amnesty Programme. When the amnesty was proclaimed, many people thought that ‘these people want to deceive us and arrest us’ so, they stayed away. But now that Amnesty Programme has produced experts, including young boys from the creeks flying airplane.  Now everybody is agitating in the media. Young people now block roads agitating to be part of it; this same thing people didn’t want to be part of, even states are agitating that they have been sidelined. The time we were doing the amnesty, other states and other ethnic nationalities said that Ijaw people were the militants and that they were not militants. Now that it is sweet, everybody is now a militant. That is the point.

     

    Are you saying that this summit, coming at this time, is not all political in view of the 2015 general elections because people think it is just another avenue to endorse President Goodluck Jonathan?

     

    Firstly, the President is an Ijaw man; so, if we gather and we don’t talk about him, it means we are forgetting where we are coming from. You see people keep saying it is politics, yes, it is politics. The point is how can we go into gathering and we will not discuss the President. It is not possible. This is the President who has added so much value to Nigeria and has abandoned the Ijaw people, the Niger Delta people. I think this is the right time to drag him to the table. We want him to use this opportunity to talk to his people. The point is that the bulk ends on  his table as the president.

    He is our own and doing a summit without him is unfair whichever way they look at it. It is none of our business. The point is  that we will get result from the President because what we are about to do need  political power to be able to move it to the next level. We need commitment on the part of politicians.  Don’t also forget that because he is going into an election we are using this to hold him. He wants votes from us and as young people we don’t want to be idle,  we want to be engaged meaningfully. So, since he wants our votes, he should tell us how he can secure our future. So if we do not do it politically we will not get a result.

    What are those things you think the president should have been able to do for the Niger Delta that he has not done?

    We have over 30,000 workforce in Brass LNG. But, first of all we are not holding anything against the President on the situation we find ourselves. He is the President of Nigeria not the President of Niger Delta or the Ijaw people. He came to meet Nigeria in disarray and he has tried to put the ship in a steady cause, which we acknowledge.

    Don’t you think it is time Bayelsa and other states in the region diversify their economies and stop depending on oil alone?

    Yes, Bayelsa needs to look inward and try to use some radical approach to increase its revenue. And which is the best way? Agriculture. Bayelsa used to have one of the biggest rice farms in the country. All we need is to revive and intensify it.

    Fishing. Traditionally, we are fishermen.  I tell you all the food especially Nigerian food is now an international delicacy. If you go to any place in the world, Nigeria’s food is now an international delicacy. Before now, when you go to some places in the world, you won’t see Nigerian food to eat. But things have changed. Today, fried plantain is now an international food so the demand for plantain is high. The demand for banana anywhere in the world, is a big business. Here, we don’t plant banana, it grows by itself. It is God that has done it. Plantain grows by itself. So why don’t we harness this potential for the betterment of the state? If we do that in six months we will be exporting world class banana especially now that there is technology. I went to Isreal and discovered that they are planting plantain in an induced environment. Plantain and banana is one sure area now because of their demands.

    Before, it was Ghana that packaged fish and other things for export. Now Lagos and other western states are taking over the market for African food in the world. People from the western part of Nigeria are living banks as managers to go and face farms. People are living oil companies for farms. Go to Lagos, from that Ajah axis, any fence you see is a farm. People are consolidating on farms because the market is there. So, why don’t we invest on farming?

    I recalled that Bayelsa State, before this administration came on board acquired fishing trollers whether it was to siphon funds at that time. Surprisingly, these fishing trollers were immediately abandoned. They are lying fallow at Ogbia waterside. The agricultural ministry should help in putting these expensive trollers to use.  Agge-Koluama is a big coast and there is a big-time fishing going on there. It is our fish but other people are coming to catch fish there. There should be a Ministry of Agriculture market  maybe in the waterside somewhere so that when boats come they will take advantage of the market and you will see how far we will be raising money in the state. So, for me, l am surprised that we have not consolidated on that and time is running out.

    As IYC, we are ready to work with the government to get the youths organised for the process. All we need now is the political will and commitment from the government. The government has done well in infrastructural sector, we want such revolution in the agricultural sector.  They shouldn’t be telling us that our youths are not ready to work. I do not agree to that; give us the opportunity to bring them to be part of the process and when they fail, then you can now hold us responsible.

  • The wasteland called Gelegele

    The wasteland called Gelegele

    •How gas flare changed a people’s destiny

    Environmental activists refer to the flow station located inside Gelegele community, in Ovia North West local government area of Edo State, as a cenotaph to Nigeria’s oil-above-human policy. The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) says it is an ongoing “environmental genocide” and “the height of corporate irresponsibility to host communities and government’s insensitivity to the suffering of its citizens”.

    It is difficult for an independent observer to disagree after visiting the pristine community located in a riverside community 45km southwest of Benin City, the Edo State capital. Gelegele is a massive oven fired by eternal flare from a flow station owned by Dubri Oil Company Limited, an indigenous oil firm, which succeeded American Phillips Oil Company.

    For about five decades, residents of this sleepy town have had a flow station, its flare and the devastating effect of gas flaring as companions. Niger Delta Report gathered that DOCL treats and evacuates crude oil produced from the Ovia and Gelegele fields through the flow station in the age-long community.

    The people of the Ijaw community say they have seen the facility change hands, at least once. Their leaders told our reporter that they have seen billions of naira made by the two owners over the ages, but nothing was ploughed back into their community.

    DOCL, in its profile, says it is committed to “pursue the goal of no harm to people”, but the people of the community say they are harmed by the company’s operation.

    Environmental activists, including Prince Chima Williams, Head of Legal Resources/Democracy Outreach, Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria, which in 2005 conducted a study into the effect of gas flaring in the Niger Delta, agreed.

    He said: “The location of the Dubri Oil flow station in the middle of Gelegele community is one of the most condemnable shortsightedness of the oil companies operations in Nigeria as it represents the situation of oil companies’ facilities locations in many Niger Delta communities.

    “Gas flaring, as has been scientifically proven, releases some harmful chemicals that hurt both humans and their environment. The impact includes a number of health related ailments with the consequences of impoverishing the people and shortening their life span. This is apt with the Gelegele community where like every other Niger Delta community life expectancy is below that of every other part of Nigeria.”

    Prince William’s claim is affirmed by a study jointly conducted with Climate Justice Programme, which states: “Flaring of AG (Associated Gas) from oil production facilities is like setting a match to an enormous container of lighter fluid. They are so hot that nothing will grow next to them. Emissions resulting from the combustion of AG in this open, uncontrolled manner will be a mix of smoke, more precisely referred to as particulate matter.”

    Investigation revealed that DOCL transports crude oil produced in the Gelegele and other facility in Ovia through a pipeline which runs through the town to the flow station, from where the associated gas is flared before it is transported by barge through River Osse to the Escravos Terminal of Chevron Nigeria Limited located some 105NM away in Escravos, Warri, Delta State for export.

    The Amaokosowei of Gelegele, Alaowei Wilson Gbai Kororo, in an exclusive chat with our reporter, recalled that when Phillips Oil came in the early 1960s, his kinsmen had no idea that the company “was coming to site the hell their missionaries preached in the bible in our community. We thought they were bringing development; we didn’t know that they were coming with sickness, death and poverty,” he added.

    He said while the oil company and its partner, the Federal Government, reap profit from the facility, the community bakes and its inhabitants live under severe economic, environmental and health hazards.

    The 72-year-old village head was battling cough and spoke with difficulty when he met Niger Delta Report. He lives in a nondescript bungalow, surrounded by mud and thatch houses, some as old as the flare point. Outside, partly cladded children played around a surface pipeline that runs through the town.

    But, he was more worried about the health situation of his town than by the abject poverty. He said life expectancy has drop drastically over the years in the community, explaining that he became youngest Amaokosuwei at about just 70 years old. The title, he explained, is for the oldest man in Gelegele, as in other Ijaw communities.

    “The last man before me became Amaokosowei at just 75 years and the one before him was around 80. This is what we are feeling since they sited this living hell in Gelegelegbene. I can tell you that there is no place as hot and inhabitable as this in the whole of Nigeria.”

    He said every time the fire from the nozzle of the flare point crackles, spurts and intensifies, the temperature in Gelegele rises, sometimes reaching as high as 45 degrees centigrade on sunny days. It was rainy on the day our reporter visited him, yet the temperature hovered around 33 degrees.

    With the increase in temperature comes discomforts and danger in the community. Everything around the flare point is dried up by the intense heat and all the dangers inherent in living with gas flare are inherent in the community.

    The Public Relations Officer of the Community, Mr Omaghomi Olu-Deremor, said the most common sickness afflicting his kinsmen are those associated with inhalation of poisonous gas.

    “If you look around,” he said, “Most people have cough and cannot breathe well, even our clan head is very sick. The nights are usually the hardest because you cannot sleep. The vibration from the pipeline when there is surge is accompanied by intense heat. You see people staying awake all night because of vibration.

    “Nobody in this community will pass a hearing test; the constant vibration, humming and noise from the flow station has damaged our hearing. Mark my words, several hours after you leave here, your ear will continue to echo just because of the few hours you have been here; but we live it every day of our lives.”

    For the woman leader, Mrs. Caro Donyegha, the discomfort of waking up at night and extreme heat is nothing compared to the fear of losing a pregnancy. She alleged that a combination of the heat and poisonous matter the women inhale has made them lost countless pregnancies over the years.

    She added: “What can you plant here? Try maize and see the result, just compare it with farms outside this area and you would appreciate our plight. The rate of miscarriage in this town is higher than in any other place. I have lived in Warri and other places, there is nowhere women lose their pregnancies as our women here. Women are finding it difficult to have children here because if they get pregnant they easily miscarry unless they quickly leave the town until the baby is strong enough.”

    A gynecologist, who was contacted on the claim that gas flare in the community was responsible for miscarriages, said there was not medical report yet to buttress the claim, but noted that the report may not be out of place.

    Our medical source, who asked not to be named, said, “There is yet no medical journal or report that I can cite on this, but it is well documented that smoking during pregnancy and long exposure to gas fumes and poisonous substances hurt humans. Whatever a woman inhales can be transmitted to the unborn baby and exposure over a period of time could indeed lead to premature rupture of membrane. This can lead to premature birth or even loss of the baby. The stress you spoke about (lack of stress, noise and excessive heat could also contribute to miscarriage. These are all suppositions; there is no solid proof to back it up.”

    But, Donyegha was adamant: “We don’t need doctor or researchers to show us this, our experiences tell us better.  We are living in hell. When we manage to give birth, our children continue from where they stopped in the womb to inhale the poison smoke from the flare. When they get sick it is usually difficult to manage. Why are we suffering from blindness, chough and other diseases?”

    A report by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) also explained: “Many scientific studies have linked breathing particulate matter to a series of significant health problems, including: aggravated asthma, increases in respiratory symptoms like coughing and difficult or painful breathing, chronic bronchitis, decreased lung function, and premature death.”

    Pa Moses Osia , a leader of the community who worked for the oil firm for nearly three decades, said the the facility has spurted millions of barrels of crude oil and billions of naira for Phillips Oil and its successor over the last few decades, adding that the fortunes of the inhabitants of the rustic community have not change.

    “If anything,” he said, “our lives have been worse off. Our people don’t have work, the youth can’t fish or farm and the elders are suffering. The pollution in the rivers ensures that we cannot fish and the land is not good, heat kills crops. The corrosion from acid rains damage all the houses. People are not safe. All the houses are constantly vibrating because of the pressure from the pipeline.

    “You see that pipe over there (pointing at a coated surface pipe) that is the pipe that carries the oil to the flow station. They take the crude from our land, pipe it to Escravos and leave us with nothing. Day and night, we face the fire.”

    Donyegha was particularly unhappy with the treatment allegedly meted on them by the oil firm, Edo and Federal governments. “Every Christmas period Dubri Company would come and give us two cows – two cows for a community this big! The cow would become a source of quarrel and fighting among the various household because it is not enough for us. We would start fighting and killing one another because of two cows. That is what we get from the company every year.”

    Our finding showed that a dilapidated, dysfunctional health centre is the only source of medicare in the town. At the time of our reporter’s visit, the grey bungalow was forlorn, except for an elderly guard who sat outside. The roof had leaks from several spots and many missing sheets from the windows.

    The community’s PRO said, “They don’t give us drugs, the health centre they built you can go and see it, there is no doctor, we only have one nurse who comes and leaves when she likes because she has nothing to work with really. The place is dilapidated and badly in need of repairs.”

    Dubri Oil Company Limited had not responded to our reporter’s electronic mail (email) request for comment at the time of this report on Tuesday, nearly week after it was sent. But a staff a staff of the company who spoke with our reporter in Benin said the company was “trying within its means.

    “We have done something in terms of educational support and have renovated schools in the community,” the source said.

    It was also gathered that the company planned to relocate the flow station from the beleaguered community. Work plan obtained from the company’s website stated that it intended to “construct a LPG plant, construct new pipeline and relocate the flow station” in 2014. But, checks at the site and the company’s premises revealed that it would take a miracle for that to happen in the last three months of the year.

    Olu-Deremon confirmed that the community earlier discussed with DOCL on the possibility of relocating the flow station.

    “They said they would not relocate the community but would instead relocate the flare. But, all that started and ended with grammar; a lot of talks and no action.”

    The spokesperson of the Ijaw Youth Council, Mr Eric Omare, said the prevailing situation highlighted all that is wrong with the oil and gas industry in the country. He said oil firms are willing to pay compensation for gas flaring because it is cheaper in the short run than investing on gas-to-liquid conversion projects. Conversely, he said the government pockets in the money instead of using it for the communities bearing the brunt of the pollution.

    “The case of Gelegele is a classical demonstration of the suffering of the oil-bearing communities of the Niger-Delta region who bear the brunt of the adverse effects of oil and gas production without corresponding benefits. The overwhelming poverty of the people bears testimony to this fact.”

    Omare, a lawyer, said the IYC recently resolved at Ofunama, Edo State that the flare site should be relocated from Gelegele to an acceptable area, adding: “Alternatively, Gelegele should be relocated to a new location within their lands with a new city built for them. However, in both cases, the people and Gelegelecommunity should be adequately compensated.

    “This position has been communicated to President Goodluck Jonathan through the office of the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs, Hon. Kingsley Kuku.

    “However, no action has been taken so far. Therefore, the IYC’s next line of action would be to take drastic and revolutionary step to seek justice for the oppressed people of Gelegele who are suffering what could best be described as ‘environmental genocide’.”

    ERA/FOE’s Prince William also said: “If the impacts are to be mitigated or stopped, the first thing is to relocate the flow station out of the community to a distant place where the impact on the people will be reduced. After that, a comprehensive health and environmental audit conducted to ascertain the level of damage already done. Lastly, it will be to put restitutionary and remediative measures in place to assuage the impacts on the people and the environment.”

    As the debate continues, Osia urged government and the various agencies to act quickly before disaster occurs in the community.

    “We live in constant fear; we have been told that if there is the smallest hole in any of these pipes and there is an explosion, it will level this community and everybody will die. That is the constant danger we face.”

  • Akwa Ibom to review Master Plan

    To incorporate current realities and ensure Uyo retains its pride of place as a modern city and centre of attraction in Nigeria, the Akwa Ibom State government is set to review its master plan.

    Chairman, Uyo Capital City Development Authority (UCCDA),  Imo Edet Inyan disclosed this while addressing delegates from  the Abakaliki Capital City Development Board (ACCDB) who were on a study tour of Uyo.

    Inyan told his counterparts from Ebonyi State that the uncommon transformation of the state capital and its environs was a result of the faithful implementation of its master plan, adding that the plan, which is 10 years old, is due for a comprehensive review  to incorporate current realities.

    He said UCCDA, established by the Akwa Ibom State Edict 13 of 1988, is vested with the responsibility of managing land within the capital city, designate sites for government and other projects, undertake public sensitisation, and organise stakeholders meetings, enforcement of and demolition illegal structures, among others.

    The UCCDA boss said the Ibom International Airport road would soon have a city gate and a parade ground.

    Secretary and head of administration, UCCDA, Mrs Emem Umoh, said other states have visited Uyo before to also understudy the state’s development strategies.

    The Surveyor-General, Okokon Essien, said the Uyo capital city  is  10 kilometers radius from the city centre, adding that it will  be increased to 15 kilometers radius in the reviewed master plan.

    The Ebonyi State team led by its Chairman, Mr Edward Nkwegu and General Manager, Justin Ogedo,  said Abakaliki, which traverses seven local government areas, needs proper planning.

    The ACCDB Chairman said Ebonyi State government decided  to study  Akwa Ibom State development system  and draw lessons for use in Ebonyi.

    The Ebonyi State team  inspect ed over 20 projects around the state capital. They visited the Akwa Ibom international Airport, the Akwa Ibom International Stadium, the State House, the Anniversary Hospital, Central motor park located at Itam, Itam timber market, Bank layout, industrial layout, Unity Park, The Tropicana Complex, Le-Meridien Hotel and Golf Resort, several highways and flyovers.

    The Ebonyi team said they learnt a lot going through the projects and that they would put their lessons to use in Abakaliki, the state capital. They were full of praises for Governor Godswill Akpabio, who they described as a man with foresight.

    The Ebonyi team is not the first to come on a tour to study how the administration has turned around Uyo from a glorified village to a biffiting state capital, which many long to visit.

  • Civil Defence steps up security at Akwa Ibom Secretariat

    To forestall security breach in the massive Akwa Ibom State secretariat, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Akwa Ibom State and Governor Godswill Akpabio have stepped up security checks  at the state secretariat.

    The Corps Commandant, Pedro Awili Ideba, said the security measure was to secure both the Secretariat, thousands of workers and visitors.

    All vehicles coming into the secretariat are checked by men and officers of NSCDC at the main gate.

    The command frowns at workers and visitors who refuse to co-operate with its officials.

    Ideba said Akpabio, being a proactive governor, approved the measure to fulfill one of his constitutional responsibilities, which is to provide adequate security for lives and property.

    The Commandant  noted that the security measure was being resisted by some people. He added that the vehicular check is one of the strategies to ward-off any planned attack around the secretariat.

    The Commandant appealed to Commissioners, Permanent Secretaries and Special Advisers to sensitise their employees and visitors on the new measure.

  • The common Niger Deltan

    I Write this for no one in particular. It is just the thoughts of a man who needs to speak out before becoming a patient at a psychiatric hospital. Let me do a brief introduction: I am what many will prefer to address as the common man. But, since I fall into the geographic divide called the Niger Delta, I opt for the option of being addressed as the common Niger Deltan. What sets me apart from the other Niger Deltans? It is simple. I am poor, stinking and not sure of where the next meal will come from. I live in the creeks. My house, made of wood, is covered with palm front, which I have to change from time to time as they wither away.

    For me, luxury is a stranger. It is something I hear about and see when the rich choose to throw their weight about. Some of my children could not go to school. I don’t have to tell you the reason. It is obvious. Did I hear anyone talk about free education? It is a mirage to me and a source of pain too.

    But, do I really have any reason to be poor? I don’t think so. I was born into wealth. Not that my father was rich. My mother was a good friend to poverty. What I mean by being born to wealth centres around the fact that I am from the Niger Delta, where the oil of Nigeria’s prosperity is drilled. A constant reminder of this is some minutes away from my abode: the Residential Area or RA, as we are wont to call it, of the multinational the government gave the licence to drill our oil on its behalf. My house and those of others around me when compared with the RA cannot be described better than saying “heaven and hell, side by side”. Ours is hell; theirs is heaven.  I guess we have sinned and come short of the glory of God to be consigned to that sort of existence.

    On a second thought, I think it is not God that we have sinned against. It is our leaders, the men we elect to lead us. Or, better still, the men who forced themselves on us as our leaders. In my part of the Niger Delta, we never see night. I will explain. The multinational operating in our area has its flow station so close to our homes. It sends out gas flares throughout the day. So, the only way to differentiate between night and day is to check our wrist watch, something that is a luxury to many of us. In my town, oil pipelines are not underground. They are in the open. And often they burst or are burst and our soils and existence are damaged in the process.

    We have shouted, protested and threatened violence over our fate, yet change has refused to come. It is as if the multinational also has another licence: to send us all to our early grave so that our leaders can have all the wealth for themselves, including the little they manage to spend on basic amenities for us. This environmental genocide, as some have called it, is having serious effects on us. Strange diseases are killing our people. Pregnant women are developing strange allergies. Yet, we have only one ill-equipped health centre to take care of our health needs. We have several people with aggravated asthma, increases in respiratory symptoms, such as coughing and difficult or painful breathing, chronic bronchitis and decreased lung function. Premature death is not uncommon.

    What further baffles me is that this multinational goes about painting a picture of being an asset to us, when it is, indeed, a curse. Every Christmas, the company sends us cows, two cows to be specific, for this big town to share. You need to come and see the fighting this usually causes. Poverty is not good. We end up fighting over something we are supposed to reject and throw back at the bearer.

    I heard the other day that the company says it is all out to ensure no harm comes to us as a result of its activities here. Yet, as I write this, my brain is being flared out by the gas flares from its flow station, which is at the centre of our town. The truth is, they are more interested in the oil than in our well-being. We can die for all they care. Oil is more important than man; that is their mantra. Our government is an accomplice in this man’s inhumanity to man. Once the royalty keeps coming in, to hell with the people. Meanwhile, they will tell us “Power to the people”. Soon, they will come around distributing rice, George and wrapper and all kinds to buy our conscience and votes. Willingly, we will sell. No thanks to poverty.

    It is lost on our government that the richest nations in the world are agro-based. The country used to make so much money from cocoa, groundnut and other cash crops. But, oil has made us mad. We have lost our sense of reasoning. We just don’t give a damn about its down side. The madness has eaten into the youths who are now looking for easy money. That is why they see militancy, kidnapping, illegal bunkering and armed robbery as better than tilling the few good soil left. I agree with the school of thought which argues that our leaders brought about the laziness among the young ones. Someone needs to show them leadership and direction.

    Our leaders must try some radical approach to increase revenue. Agriculture will help. Rice farms will do a lot of magic. We are known as fishermen, but we are not doing it well. If we do it well, we will make lots of cash locally and foreign exchange will also increase tremendously. In many of our communities, crops, such as plantain and banana, just sprout out on their own. We don’t have to plant them. I read somewhere in one of those scarce moments when I come across newspapers that plantain can be imported too. This is something that just grows on its own on our soil. We need to think.  We must harness this potential for the betterment of the state.

    The other time our past governor acquired fishing trolleys. We were happy they would help us get more from our fishes. As I write, these trolleys are abandoned at a waterside, another evidence of how we waste our limited resources. It is a tale of ‘Papa Deceiving Pikin’. We are just one big nation of liars. Leaders lie. Journalists bend the fact. Oil companies twist the facts. It is just a big game of deceit. But, we must not continue like this lest we perish.

    This is where I rest my case hoping somebody will rescue me from the huge oven the flare from the oil giant’s flow station has turned my home. Or, may be my last hope lies in my son, the only one I managed to send to the university but ended up a militant when there was no job. Through the Amnesty Programme, he was trained as a pilot. If he gets a job, may be my sorrow will be over and I will leave this oven I call home and start life afresh. But, like many who benefitted from the Amnesty Programme trainings, he is still jobless and living off his monthly stipend, a percentage of which goes to his former militant camp leader.