The women, predominantly farmers, voice their discontent over SPDC’s decision to sell its assets to Renaissance Africa Energy without prior consultation with host communities, stakeholders and without addressing environmental concerns.
The outcry extends beyond rhetoric, as some affected women who are primarily farmers and fishermen in Okwuzi community in Ogba, Egbema, Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers state through their spokesperson, Uba Chineiro, demanded transparency from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission regarding SPDC’s divestment documents.
They insisted that approval for shell, Agip and other international oil companies’ divestment should not proceed until all polluted farmlands and rivers in Onelga and the wider Niger Delta are cleaned and restored.
Edith Onwusa “I can not Harvest any Cassava from my farm again and I am not happy because my primary source of livelihood has been killed due to Agip exploration activities. Not only that the pollution has destroyed our water, the water is not safe for drinking again if you check our streams you will see raw crude in our water”.
Elizabeth Emeji ” I’ve run into a massive loss as all my fish have died due to oil pollution in the swamp where I operate my fish farm, I can not catch any fish again all the fishes have died and it is affecting our community because fish is now expensive”.
Julian Abali” before the oil exploration activities we use to have abundance of fish in our rivers but the oil multinationals company presence has brought nothing but sorrow to us, all we are demanding is that shell must not live Nigeria until they restore our farmlands and waters back to the way they met it, the Federal Government should please come to our aid”.
Mgbenwa Peace” the decision of shell to leave Nigeria without considering the women and their livelihood that has been destroyed is an irresponsible act.
“If you visit someone and you want to go the right thing is to call them and inform them properly about your exit but it is surprising to us that Agip wants to leave without even considering us, they are not even speaking on how they can empower us, so who will clean our farmlands that have been destroyed by their activities?.
“our land can not be used for planting again currently we are handicapped and the Government must do everything possible to halt the sells and transfer of Agip assets to another company untill our demands are met”.
The grievances deepen as families, like the Chukwures in ibaa community in Emouha Local Government Area, recount their harrowing experiences.
PrinceWill Chukwure, the eldest son, recounts their ordeal since 2016 when their compound was found to be polluted due to Shell’s oil exploration activities.
He their appeals for compensation and relocation has falling on shell deaf ears, as the family continues to suffer from polluted water sources.
” in 2016 we discovered that our well which we use for domestic activities have been polluted we discovered some black substance inside the well , in 2022 shell and their cohorts came and seal off the well they casted the well from down to top so since 2016 we have written to department of petroleum resources DPR, we have written to Federal ministry of health, also to the honourable commissioner of health, and the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, they came back here in 2016 they took samples from the well and they have failed to make public the result of the investigation which we have continually demanded.
“In 2022 we were invited by NOSDRA in their office with shell representatives in that meeting they asked of what we wanted and we told them that they should relocate us from an environment in which the site is polluted, but for the past two years that they said they have been carrying out they’re remediation process in my compound nothing has changed everywhere is still polluted. The main dug well which serves as an evidence of how bad our site is polluted has been decommissioned by shell after removing over thirty three litres of crude oil from the said well, that has been out story.
“We have been begging them to relocate us and they have not been paying attention they are not concerned about our health, our compound is currently sitting on a keg of gun powder because even shell inscribed caution notice of no smoking and using of mobile phones at the entrance of their manifold but they have allowed my family to live in such dangerous environment.
“Our Rivers, air and land are all polluted our crops are severely destroyed and nothing is being said about it. We want government to come to our aid, we want government to bring shell to justice this place has been polluted from 2016 till now and the evidence from the report we had is that this pollution emanated from shell as a result of operational failure, there is a leakage from their manifold which occurred in 2015 and that leakage caused the pollution we are experiencing today, since 2016 till date shell has not given us any alternative source of portable drinkable water, they are not bothered about our wellbeing, we are only seeing their workers every day in our compound but I tell you nothing has changed things keeps on getting bad, all divestment plans by shell should be put to stop by the Federal Government untill they pay for their sins”. He said
Today fm Olawale Sanusi reports that as the voices of Niger Delta families grow louder, their demand for justice reverberates across the region.
They implore the Federal Government to halt Shell’s and other IOC’s divestment plans until proper compensation and remediation measures are implemented, ensuring that the legacy of environmental devastation left by oil exploration does not go unaddressed.
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