The people of Ekpeye Ethnic Nation in Rivers State, Nigeria, have lauded the efforts of NNPCL Pipeline Contractors, Tantitta Security Services and Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria , PINL for stemming the tides of illegal petroleum activities in the Niger Delta Region.
They also called for the full implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, for an optimal crisis -free operations and judicious utilization of funds allotted to HCDT for the Development of the Host Communities.
The call was made during a 1st Quarter Sensitization and Town Hall Meeting organized by a Non Governmental Organization, NGO, Ekpeye Oil and Gas Pipelines Host Families Association, EOG, on Saturday, April 27, at Ahoada Town.
The participants lampooned stakeholders in the oil and gas industry for their insensitivity to the people’s plight and deliberate obnoxious policies to continue to subjugate the people.
One of the guest speakers and a Professor of Environmental Sociology, Steve Wordu, urged the people to be united in supporting the ideals of the NGOs, if the ethnic nation would get its due of the national cake.
Wordu, who lamented the burden oil and gas producing communities face, being made victims of governmental neglect over the years, stated that the increased insecurity in the land could be blamed on increased hunger and deprivation caused by incessant uncleaned environmental pollution by failed facilities of the IOCs.
He revealed that Host Families/Communities are not only marginalized but brutalized in most cases and made poorer in midst of the wealth from their backyard.
The Environmental Sociologist reiterated his respect for EOG’s non violent approach and urged the community leaders to support and encourage it.
Another Guest Speaker, Sheikh Abdulrazak Echeya, urged Ekpeye Ethnic Nation, through EOG to take the ‘bull by the horn’ and champion the campaign on the full implementation of the PIA, through a non violent approach as advocated by it.
Sheikh Echeya warned of dire consequences of the IOCs continuous deliberate refusal to empower the people, especially the youths in their areas of operation, hinting that the real enemies of the Nigeria state are those in government offices like NNPC, Chief Executives etc, who steal millions of dollars with their pen and involve in illegal international crude trade, than the poor artisans that curry little products for their daily living.
In his welcome address earlier, the National Chairman of EOG, Comrade Dogini Chidi, highlighted the aims and objectives of the programme to include: “Provision for development to strive in the land, support for the pipeline surveillance contractors to boost the economy, to create a hospitable and peaceful Ekpeye Ethnic Nation devoid of environmental pollution.
Others include; “the drive to curb youth restiveness, which will help to checkmate oil and crude facility vandalism. it will also help to erase unfriendly working environment and maximize production and it will complement pipeline surveillance job within the ethnic nation.”
Other participants like Rt. Hon. MacSunday Ugwu and others,called on the IOCs to give host communities right of first refusal on oil pipeline surveillance responsibilities.
They harped on the deliberate policy of impoverishing the host communities through conscious refusal to provide social amenities that would have improved commerce and build the financial economy of the areas.
