By Pius Dukor, Port Harcourt
As controversy continued to trail the manner Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), is planning to divest oil in the Niger Delta region, the media have been tasked to escalate the issue and show more concern to communities that have suffered from oil pollution over the years.
The Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD), drop the hint at a one day interactive forum with the media, in Port Harcourt the Rivers State capital.
Speaking to journalist in an interview shortly after the event, the Coordinator of CEHRD, Dr. Nabie Nubari explained that the interactive forum is all about knowledge sharing in respect to oil divestment in the Niger Delta, noting that it is a criminal flight to run away from oil liabilities in the various polluted oil communities. Nabie further maintained that some of the new companies proposed to take over from Shell are alleged to be owned by former Shell Petroleum Development Company staff, showing that they are only handing over asset to their proxy without taking care of the many years of environmental degradation in the communities.
He stated that the faith of the community people are hanging because they are not allowed to take part in the divestment negotiation or own share in the new companies and above all the pollution is left unattended to.
Explaining further, he stressed that the media should help in propagating the information and ask questions on the integrity of the old oil pipeline of over 70 years saying that more of the oil pipe are obscured and outdated waiting for explosion.
The Coordinator of CEHRD said since the media is the conscience of the society, it behoves on them to put the issue of oil Divestment in proper perspective without allowing the communities to suffer colossal damage, noting that the new indigenous companies paraded by Shell may be own by the same Shell but they want run away from their liabilities like compensation, clean up and negotiation from the communities. ” We are against oil actor pretending like if they are local oil companies” he said.
Earlier in his presentation on CEHRD- SOMO Project, Dr.Victor Zabbey of CEHRD outlined the various controversies trailing divestment where Communities are in court already, while demanding for accountability and environmental performance in the region, lamenting that the various communities are not aware of what is going on concerning divestment and the role they can play.
Zabbey told the media that Shell have the right to divest but they must clean up the environment they messed up.In his presentation titled Shell Divestment and Environmental Accountability: The Role of the Media, Dr. Komi Wilson agreed that there is environmental genocide in the Niger Delta by the multinational oil companies, including Shell and call for media action.
He cited some loopholes in legal requirements guiding Divestment and condemned where six months delay in signing the document by the Minister of Petroleum leads to approval of such document, saying that it is obnoxious.
On divestment done by Shell in the past, especially on OML 29 Nembe Creek Trunk line, the Resource Person said such Divestment was in a hast, in secret and lack transparency without any compensation to the community. He enumerated many Communities in the Niger Delta where oil have destroyed their livelihood completed such as Bodo City oil spills, oil spill in Bille, K. Dere, Ebubu in Eleme among others. Shell was advised to halt all Divestment plans until the right consultation be done with all stakeholders including the communities.
Highlights of the event was the commitment by journalist to help write on the subject matter until the right thing be done.
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It is indeed criminal to play tricks on the very Host communities that they have milked over the years in the name of divestment. Let the needful be done.
This call on media to escalate the divestment of oil companies in the Niger Delta region is pertinent as the oil companies, such as SPDC, NAOC, Total E & P, etc, have not shown much concern to communities impacted by oil pollution .