Lagos — The Artisanal Fishermen Association of Nigeria (ARFAN) has demanded N46.8 billion from Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU), as compensation for the destruction of their fishing gears by oil spills.

The demand letter was addressed to the Chief of Staff to the President, Chief Michael Ogiadome.

It is entitled: "Demand for Cash Compensation for Crude Oil Spill Damages by Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) for Years 2000, 2002,2008, 2009 and 2010 (Triple Spills) to Members of Artisanal Fishermen Association of Nigeria (ARFAN), Akwa Ibom Branch.

The letter was signed by the Akwa Ibom Chairman of ARFAN, Rev. Samuel Ayadi, its Secretary, Mr Inyang Inyangekong and National Coordinator, Chief Titus Adegbesan.

Ayadi said that the letter became necessary to forestall the breakdown of peace, law and order in the area due to continuous oil spills that had virtually paralysed fishing activities.

He said that the oil spills had destroyed the source of livelihood of many members of the association, rendering them jobless and were no longer able to cater for their families.

He said that several representations to MPNU directly and through other relevant agencies, in respect of the hardship suffered by fishermen in the area due to the incessant oil spills had not yielded any positive result.

Ayadi said, "We have reported the cases of the incessant oil spills to the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and DPR to no avail.

"We have also contacted MPNU directly through our legal adviser without positive response.

"A case of compensation claims on years 200-2003 is before the Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology and is the subject of arbitration in the National Assembly till today.

"The former Governor of Akwa Ibom, Chief Victor Attah, in 2003 cried out on the effect of crude oil spill.

In 2008, Gov. Godswill Akpabio witnessed the oil spill and promised to ensure that the victims were compensated and set up technical committee without any positive result."

According to him, the affected fishermen had lost assorted fishing nets and gears, outboard engines, boats and equipment due to the oil spills.

"About 3,000 of the 6,500 registered members of ARFAN across the 13 local government areas of the state are handicapped and cannot go back to the business and many cannot send their children to school," Ayadi said .

He also said that due to the oil spills, the price of crayfish had risen from between N1,800 and N3,000 in 2008 to between N10,000 and N12,000 at present.

The ARFAN state chairman further said that a kilogramme of barracuda fish which sold for N300 in 2008, now costs N500.

Ayadi said that the fishermen were also spending a lot of money on fuel for their outboard engine boats as a litre of oil cost between N100 and N120 per litre.

He explained that about 170 litres of fuel was needed for a single trip and since the fishermen had to go outside Nigerian territorial waters it cost about N17,000 for the trip.

"Mobil is doing serious havoc to us, because the fish have migrated from our waters due to the frequent oil spills," Ayadi said.

The chairman said that the oil spills were due to rusty pipelines that had been corroded by chemicals and urged the company to replace them.

He said that the challenges facing artisanal fishermen was one of the problems of the Niger Delta region.