Ogoni accuses Buhari of ‘public deception’
According to a statement by Beabubari Ndorbu, Media
Coordinator for the Ogoni Springtime, “At the heart of the protests, is the self-declared
self-government of the Ogoni people, which had abolished the Movement for the
Survival of the Ogoni people, MOSOP, founded by the executed famous writer and
activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa.
“President of Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority, heading
the self-government, Dr. Goodluck Diigbo, who was the closest associate of
Saro-Wiwa, said MOSOP demanded for self-government, and its lifespan ended with
the actualization.
“Diigbo is urging the Nigerian government to facilitate a genuine
joint stakeholders’ review of the environmental assessment study on Ogoniland,
a mission undertaken by the United Nations Environmental Programme, UNEP.
“When the report was released on August 4, 2012, he
disputed, and called for urgent independent:1. Due process test; 2. Neutrality and impartiality test; 3. Integrity test, and 4. Reconciliation with World Bank EIA policy,
UNEP procedures and Nigerian Government regulations.
“When President Muhammadu Buhari on August 5, 2015 approved
several actions to fast-track the long delayed implementation of the report, he
declared the Ogoni Springtime. Buhari had said that the actions approved were
based on recommendations to him by the Executive Director of UNEP, the UNEP
Special Representative for Ogoniland, permanent secretaries of the Federal
Ministries of Environment and Petroleum Resources, and others, include the
amendment of the official gazette establishing the Hydrocarbon.
“But, Diigbo said the recommendations were secret, received
from non-experts and lied about the identity of those involved.
“He urged the Buhari administration to show proof by
publishing the recommendations and names of the signatories, which never
happened, thus, causing a lot of considerable confusion and resentment."
The Ogoni protesters said President Buhari deceived the
entire world, not just the Ogoni people.
Amnesty International said President Buhari’s initiative
would fail and the Ogoni people would continue to suffer, as long as Shell
fails to change its method of oil spill clean-up.
The stand-off with authorities began with protests on August
9, 2015 at the Nigeria Police Area command in Ogoniland, and other locations.
At Monday’s protest, a major political party opposed to the
Rivers State Government led-the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP ruling party in
the state, allegedly sponsored a group of youth to confront the peaceful
protesters.
A splinter Eleme youth group, led by its leader, said “nobody want to tell us what the
UNEP Report is about, and we are not Ogonis.”
When the group members started to disrupt the protest, the
police began shooting into the air.
Hundreds of protesters had blocked the East-West Road, a
busy expressway, leading to two refineries, petrol chemical plant, ocean
terminal and fertilizer plants among other key economic installations in the
area.
Then, Diigbo ordered the protesters to end it, and promised
to encourage proper understanding among the ill-informed and ill-advised youth
elements.
He said the people would hold out the Ogoni Springtime to
the end of injustice against them.
He warned politicians, including elected representatives,
who are fueling violence that they can’t have it both ways.
“If Eleme is not Ogoni, then the UNEP report on Ogoniland,
is irrelevant to Eleme, irrespective of reference made to Eleme in the report.
Ogonis paid the ultimate price for the report,” he said.
Leaders of the Council of Ogoni Churches, met recently and
appealed to President Buhari to pull back his orders, to douse tension in
Ogoniland.
The Church council President, Reverend, Sir Mike Ibirah said
he should act for the sake of peace, because damage to peace, would far exceed
the cost of damage to a wrong policy.
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