Uche Nwaonu
19 November 2008
opinion
Lagos — In the last few weeks, the news from the Niger Delta region has not been all violence, kidnappings and sabotage.
There has been a semblance of meeting of minds between the federal government and the leaders of the sub-region. First, on October 14, an 11-member delegation of leaders from the South-South geopollitical zone led by retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Mr. Justice Adolphus Karibi Whyte were at the Presidential Villa Abuja. They came to present the resolutions of the Vanguard-organised South-South Legislative Retreat on Constitutional Review held in August 2008 to the Federal Government. Among the delegation were the former Governor of Delta State and the President of the Urhobo Progressive Union, Olorogun Felix Ibru, former
Governor of Edo State, Chief John Oyegun, Vanguard Publisher, Mr. Sam Amuka, prominent Ijaw leader Chief Edwin Clark , chairman of the Niger Delta Technical Committee, Mr. Ledum Mittee. Vice President Goodluck Jonathan , the Ministers of Petroleum, Transportation and Science and Technology, and the NDDC Managing Director, Mr Timi Alaibe also attended the ceremony. President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua used the forum to declare that "we shall do anything as an Administration within available resources and the imperfect constitutional provisions within which we are constrained to operate" to solve the problems in the Niger Delta.
The President said that in as much as he "appreciated the issues raised and supported constitutional amendments, such must be undertaken as provided by the constitution" and should not become another excuse for allowing the problem to fester. He thanked the South-South Leaders for "frankly airing their views" and for their sacrifices to bringing peace not only to the Niger Delta but to the nation, assuring them that his doors would "always be open to listen to advice and opinions that will help us find a lasting solution to national problems like that of Niger Delta." Mr Justice Karibi White later told journalists that though it is too early to draw conclusions on whether the President was sincere in his assurances, there is no evidence that he does not mean well. According to him, "from what I know of the President, he would not say what he does not mean.
The suggestions we made (in the report) are serious, genuine and salutary to this country. Anybody who ignores such serious suggestions, and knowing the sensitive nature of the matter of the Niger Delta, at that stage, we will begin to doubt his sincerity. But at the moment, we believe that he (President Yar'Adua) means something serious." A day later, Vice President Goodluck Jonathan hosted a dinner in honour of members of the Niger Delta Technical Committee, saying that the Federal Government is confident that the Committee will come up with recommendations which will bring about peace and stimulate development in the region.
Vice President Jonathan also assured Nigerians that Government is genuinely determined to address the Niger Delta issues , promising to "do justice to the Committee's Report." He commended members of the Committee for their commitment, expressing hope that its report will be a well researched document that will stand the test of time. Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Ledum Mitee, added that the Niger Delta problems affect not only the region but other parts of the country, calling for the support of the Federal Government, States and all stakeholders towards the attainment of peace in the region. But in this match towards rapproachment, one issue that has taken the back seat is the havoc oil spillage is causing to the Niger Delta environment .
At the First National Environment Summit, Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr Timi Alaibe called for urgent attention to the environmental challenges in the Niger Delta Region , noting that pollution arising from oil and gas exploration portends great danger to future generations in the region. The NNDC boss, who hinged his presentation on Oil and Ecological Disruption in the Niger Delta - Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development, blamed the increasing wave of militancy in the region to neglect by successive governments which ignored the region for a long time.
"Today, some of the things we didn't do are what could be responsible for the security challenges the nation is facing. The Region was ignored for a long time without giving it the special attention as recommended by the various commissions in the past." A visit to the region would reveal that oil spillages are a regular feature of life in the Delta. Spills are caused by a multitude of factors including when poorly maintained infrastructure fails under high pressure, accidents and rupture of pipelines. But the one which has been a major and direct attack on the Niger Delta and its peoples is through the burgeoning trade in stolen oil which results in local people tapping into lines and wells, damaging them or leaving them leaking. Sabotage of pipes is common, often by local people hoping to get cash compensation. But the one which calls for urgent intervention by leaders of the region is the deliberate sabotage of major oil pipelines . This has
brought accusations and counter accusations. Clearly, where the spills are due to failing equipment, the oil companies are clearly responsible. But what do you do when they are as a result of sabotage by indigenes of the region who are masquerading such actions as part of militancy when it is an open criminal act. In the Niger Delta, between 1976 and 1998, over 5724 oil spills with 2,571,113.90 (2.5 million) barrels of oil have been spilt into the Delta environment; and that is only spills officially recorded by the Department of Petroleum Resources.
But data from the Pipelines and Products Marketing Comapny (PPMC) show that pipeline vandalisation accounts for almost 50 % of oil spill. And it has cost the nation over N150.5bn in revenue from 1999-2007. Out of this amount, N36.646bn and N17.24bn were lost in 2006 and 2007 respectively. And just recently, the pipeline conveying crude oil to Warri and Kaduna refineries (the System 2C) was vandalised at two locations in Egwa and Batan, in the coastal Warri South-West Council on October 1. It was repaired by Fenog Nigeria Limited at a total cost of $5.1 m (about N596.7 million).
The PPMC on the other hand was reported to have lost 66,256 metric tons of petroleum products to pipeline vandalisation in the first quarter of 2008. And an oil exploration company reports that vandalisation of its pipelines averages about 74 ruptures per month. So, it is clear that since the upsurge in militant activities, sabotage has taken the upper hand as the main source of oil pollution. Some of the inhabitants and or their collaborators engage in oil bunkering. Therefore, from time to time, they damage and destroy oil pipelines in their efforts to collect oil from them.
This has led to the non-functioning of most of the 24 NNPC Depots in the country, with attendant perennial fuel scarcity. Last September, Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) announced with glee that they had hit another oil pipeline, therefore unleashing thousands of crude oil into the environment. The group boasted it will fan out and attack oil installations of other companies in neighboring states and "will continue to nibble every day at the oil infrastructure in Nigeria until the oil exports reach zero."
And just recently, the Chanomi Creek pipeline, which supplies crude to Warri and Kaduna refineries was vandalised, with iits attendant pollution. The Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta has continously warned militants bent on carrying out attacks on oil installations and the nation's economic interests that its troops are on red alert and prepared to crush any attack. But the JTF asked the MEND to note that while they may think they are fighting the military or the Nigerian State , they are waging a direct assault on the environment of the people of the region. Truth is that major oil spills heavily contaminate marine shorelines, causing severe localised ecological damage to the near-shore community.
The harmful effects of oil spill on the environment are many. Oil destroys plants and animals in the estuarine zone. It settles on beaches and kills organisms and marine animals like fishes, crabs and other crustaceans. Oil endangers fish hatcheries in coastal waters and as well contaminates the flesh of commercially valuable fish. Oil poisons algae, disrupts major food chains and decreases the yield of edible crustaceans. Oil on water surface also interferes with gaseous interchange at the sea surface and dissolved oxygen levels will thereby be lowered.
That is why all those who claim to love the people of the region should avoid all activities which continue to damage the ecosystem. Leaders of the Niger Delta region ought to take a new moral ground on putting a stop to self-inflicted oil spillage of the environment through deliberate sabotage of pipelines. This is because between May and August this year, a total of 20 major different attacks on oil pipelines have been unleashed on the region by militant activities. In each, it brings about shut or countdoown in production. The people, who everyone is fighting for are not safe in these polluted environments.
And this is part of why the military is deployed in the area - to guard pipelines against vandalisation, and assist the people in safeguarding their immediate environment. They have been there since the activities of cult groups in Rivers State opened up new vistas of violence after the 2003 elections, as Operation FLUSHOUT III. And the current restructuring of the JTF, there has been noticeable reduction in pipeline vandalism and illegal oil bunkering in the area. But it behoves on all that as the fedeal government moves to live up to its responsibilites, such self-inflicted pollution of the environment should cease. There should be concerted efforts to opt for peace and security as this will lead to the reduction in military presence. That is the way it has to be in order to help safeguard the environment and sustain the current tempo of development efforts in the Niger Delta.
Nwaonu wrote from Abuja
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
