Cleaning up Ogoni land

President Muhammadu Buhari recently flagged-off a multi-billion naira clean-up and restoration programme of Ogoni land at Bodo in Gokana local government area of Rivers State. Represented by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, he said financial and legislative frameworks had been put in place to start implementing the recommendations of a United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) report, […]

President Muhammadu Buhari recently flagged-off a multi-billion naira clean-up and restoration programme of Ogoni land at Bodo in Gokana local government area of Rivers State. Represented by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, he said financial and legislative frameworks had been put in place to start implementing the recommendations of a United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) report, commissioned by the federal government in 2006. The president said the programme would have sustainable development components that will benefit the people of the area. He added that the methodology for the clean-up and remediation will ensure job creation for youths.
The UNEP 2011 report found severe and widespread contamination of soil and underground water across Ogoni land. In a number of locations public health was greatly threatened by polluted drinking water and carcinogens. Delta ecosystems like mangroves were also destroyed. It also found that institutional control measures put in place both in the oil industry and government were not adequately implemented. It proposed the establishment of a Restoration Authority with an explicit mandate to clean up Ogoni and restore the ecosystems. It also recommended the setting up of an Ogoni Land Environmental Restoration Fund with an initial capitalisation of $1 billion to cover the clean-up costs.
The launching of the Ogoni remediation programme marked a significant and historic step towards improving the situation of the Ogoni, who have for decades suffered the effects of oil extraction. In spite of this, the Ogonis laid the foundation of their struggle against environmental degradation on the mantra of non-violence. We therefore, urge other Niger Delta agitators to emulate the Ogoni and adopt peaceful measures in pursuing their grievances, knowing that no matter how long it takes, their goals will be realised. Though some Ogonis, under the aegis of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) have expressed skepticism over the clean-up, we commend Buhari for finding the political will and courage to implement the UNEP report which was ignored by his predecessor, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, who is of Niger Delta extraction.
This demonstrates the president’s resolve to not only deliver on his campaign promises, but also pledges to the international community. During the campaigns for the 2015 general elections and at the G7 meeting in Munich, Germany in June 2015, he pledged his administration’s commitment to remediate Ogoni land’s ecosystems. However, we must bear in mind that a clean-up and restoration effort of this magnitude cannot happen overnight as experts say it would take between 25 and 30 years. There should be cooperation between the federal government, the oil companies and the affected communities for the desired results to be achieved. The success of the Ogoni clean-up will demonstrate that other degraded environments in the Niger Delta can be restored, thus sending a strong signal to other communities that peaceful cooperation can lead to positive outcomes.
Perhaps, the federal government can learn a few lessons from the capital intensive exercise and begin to strictly monitor and regulate the activities of oil companies with regards to operational standards and environmental responsibility to avoid the kind of pollution and degradation witnessed in Ogoni land for decades. There is no doubt that the clean-up is critical to the region, as it will help create new livelihoods, establish old ones and change the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. It will also serve as a metaphor for other oil producing companies and set a new model for working towards sustainable development, even in the most challenging environments.
But like the Minister of Environment, Mrs. Amina Mohammed said at the flag-off ceremony, the implementation of the UNEP report requires transparency, accountability, truthful partnership and proper representation of the people at the grassroots in whatever the government is doing. The federal government should not allow the clean-up and restoration exercise, which experts say is likely to be the world’s most wide-ranging and long-term oil clean-up, to fail because the whole world is watching Nigeria to see how it will handle the sensitive programme.