For remediation to succeed, always involve Ogoni people, Gov Fubara gives rare hint to end sabotage

For remediation exercise in Ogoni area to work, the federal government has been advised to always involve Ogoni people.

The advice was dropped by Gov Sim Fubara who said integrating Ogoni people in all the processes geared towards remediating their land to bring lasting respite to years of environmental degradation they had suffered will truly make them own the projects without sabotaging them.

Gov Fubara made the remark when he received on courtesy visit, the Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, and his delegation, at Government House in Port Harcourt on Monday, February 24, 2025.

The Minister of Environment was accompanied by Abubakar Momoh, the Minister of Regional Development, Mohamed Malick Fall, the UN Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator, and Nenibarini Zabbey, Project Coordinator of the Hydrocarbon Pollution and Remediation Project (HYPREP).

Gov Fubara noted with delight the progress reports that have been reeled out by the Minister of Environment, which he said indicated the seriousness given to remediating the effects of pollution occasioned by oil exploration and production in Ogoniland.

He said, “We all know the situation of Ogoniland. They don’t have good water, they don’t even have the farmland for agriculture anymore, their rivers are already polluted.

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“If they have anyone that is remaining, the fishes there are already contaminated. The life expectancy is also cut short because whether we like it or not, the food we eat, when contaminated; the water we drink, when contaminated; also affects the elements in our system.

“So, I want to appeal that while we go on with this programme, it is not just coming to commission the water project and the few other things that have been outlined here, the Ogoni people, the people directly affected should be part of it. There should be buy-in, they should own what you are doing.”

Gov Fubara stated: “And how do they own it? It is not by you sitting in Abuja and awarding contracts to somebody we don’t know. Inasmuch as I don’t support issuing it to somebody who cannot deliver, but the community people should be part of the process, so that they have that sense of belonging, that sense of responsibility; it also gives the sense of protection. Because if they believe that they are not part of it, issues of sabotage come in.”

Gov Fubara said the Water Project that has been completed under the supervision of HYPREP and now ready for inauguration must be truly functional to serve the people who had suffered lack of portable water for years.

He promised, as a government, to convoke a meeting of critical stakeholders in the benefitting communities to emphasise the need for them to protect the projects, and never allow them to collapse, either by lack of maintenance or vandalisation.

Gov Fubara explained that his administration paid for metering of consumers in communities in Eleme, Tai, Khana, Gokana and Andoni Local Government Areas in order to ensure the availability of electricity to the people to enhance their livelihoods.

“So, I am happy that you are also doing something to that effect, because if we are talking about development coming into Ogoniland, you cannot develop the area without power; the most important thing.

Gov Fubara explained that his administration conducted a study across sectors to determine more pressing areas to give urgent attention to make life comfortable for the people.

He said after expert analysis was made from reports collated, there was need to break away from mere jamboree that the state witnessed for a long while, and government decided to address issues head-on, especially healthcare delivery and education.

He said, “We have to go all out to make sure that we do what is right. And I believe what you are seeing in the recent report is because of our deliberate action to make sure that we improve the state of our healthcare services in Rivers State.

“We didn’t end just in the aspect of the healthcare, knowing fully well that if the SDGs have to be achieved on poverty, and healthcare, education is also key. With education, you also reduce the level of crime, because when a lot of people are educated, they get into positive engagements. These engagements, in a way, reduce, at least, 10 percent of the number of those people that are supposed to go into crime.”

Gov Fubara restated: “In the next six months, we might be even inviting you to come and do a tour of what we are already achieving because we have a lot.

“By the special grace of God, in the next two weeks, we will be unveiling Bori Zonal Hospital. This hospital is to take care of intermediary medical cases to reduce the pressure that we are having in our teaching hospital,” he added.

In his address, Lawal, the Minister of Environment, said the delegation was in Rivers State to inspect ongoing projects, adding that they would also be inaugurating some that have been completed like the Water Projects.

Lawal stated that they have been confronted with frustrating attitude put up by the people in accepting some projects or even owning the ongoing ones, which he added, has led to series of town hall meetings and community engagement fora to secure the people’s buy-in.

He added, “Tomorrow, we are commissioning water project. We have done about four before, and we believe that these projects are not just meant for the Ogoni people, but I think there are also going to extend to a number of other communities around Rivers State.

“Accordingly, we are building a state-of-the-art hospital, which has gone more than 50 percent now. It is going to address some of the bigger issues related to pollution. We also have so many cottage hospitals we are trying to do, which will link to that. In that area, we have been receiving a lot of cooperation from the state government.”

In his remarks, Fall, the UN Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator, commended the Governor for his administration’s support to ongoing work in Ogoniland, and stressed that the partnership will help all parties achieve the desired targets set out in the UNEP Report recommendations for the benefit of Ogoni people, the entire State, and indeed, the Niger Delta region.