Rivers: Protesters shut down oil resumption congress in Ogoni

Protesters have disrupted a planned congress of the Ogoni people to facilitate the resumption of oil production in Ogoni by a group said to be working with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.

The protesters, who stormed the venue of the meeting in Bori, the traditional headquarters of the Ogoni people carried placards with various inscriptions decrying the process being followed by the stakeholders driving the oil resumption efforts.

They claimed that the organisers of the discussion had sidelined some notable groups, especially the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).

The massive protests shut down the event as protestors defied security personnel who attempted to pacify them to halt the protests.

Some of the placards read: “Ledum Mitee and Ribadu, Leave Ogoni Alone”, “On Ogoni Development Authority We Stand”, “Exonerate Ken Saro-Wiwa”. 

A delegation of Ogoni people led by Rivers state hovernor, Siminalayi Fubara, recently visited President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to negotiate a possible resumption of oil production in Ogoni. 

The president had mandated the NSA to ensure that all Ogoni stakeholders are included in the dialogue process. 

However, the decision was greeted with mixed reactions as various interest groups have expressed their displeasure in the way the oil resumption plan has been executed. 

Meanwhile, MOSOP has expressed displeasure over exclusion from the process, accusing the NSA of sidelining MOSOP after an alleged earlier commitment to ensure that the group’s position was considered in the dialogue process.

MOSOP in a statement by its president, Fegalo Nsuke, said the struggle of the Ogoni people had been championed by MOSOP, noting that they are very conscious of the sensitive situation and will rely on the position of MOSOP on the way to go. 

He expressed worries that MOSOP, being left out, could create distrust in the hearts of the Ogoni people, noting also that the process was being rushed in a way that could generate tension, anxiety and crises in Ogoni.

Also, a coalition of civil society groups known as the Ken Saro-Wiwa Exoneration Campaign has called for honesty and transparency in the process. 

The group said the approach being adopted was not acceptable to the Ogoni people and called for the exoneration of nine Ogoni activists killed along with Ken Saro-Wiwa by the Nigerian Government on November 10, 1995. 

The coalition also called for a panel of investigation to unravel the immediate and remote causes of the death of four Ogoni leaders killed earlier on May 21, 1994.

Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others had been executed on the orders of General Sani Abacha after a widely condemned trial in Port Harcourt. The convicts were denied the right to appeal their sentences.

Ogoni in the United States and Canada had earlier condemned the planned resumption of oil production in Ogoni and called for the exoneration of the innocent men including Ken Saro-Wiwa who were executed on November 10, 1994.

The latest protest represents a major setback for President Tinubu’s determination to resolve the issues and resume the production of oil in Ogoni.