The Ogoni Development and Democracy Forum (ODDF) has criticized the federal government‘s move to appoint representatives for the Ogoni community on the governing boards of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) and the Ogoni Trust Fund (OTF), deeming it inappropriate.
During a press briefing in Port Harcourt, ODDF convener Legborsi Pyagbara emphasized that any attempt to seize control of these initiatives would be firmly opposed.
Pyagbara explained that the Ogoni Trust Fund was established with three key stakeholders: the federal government, oil companies, and the Ogoni people themselves. It was mutually agreed that each group should independently select their representatives.
“It is important to clarify that the Ogoni clean-up and environmental restoration effort is not a benevolent act from the Nigerian government. Rather, it is the outcome of a determined collective struggle by the Ogoni community, sparked by the peaceful and non-violent activism of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP),” he stated.
“This movement led to conflicts that necessitated a negotiation process, beginning with an environmental assessment conducted by the United Nations. Subsequently, a second negotiation phase involved the government, the Ogoni people represented by MOSOP, and the oil companies, initially led by Shell,” Pyagbara added.
“These three parties engaged as equal stakeholders, guided by the United Nations Secretary-General’s special envoy on the UNEP Report, Hon. Eric Soroh. The negotiations placed the Ogoni people at the core of the project. Any current efforts to undermine this arrangement will be met with strong resistance.”
“The Ogoni Trust Fund’s governance includes three stakeholders: the federal government, initially represented by the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and later by the Federal Ministry of Environment; the oil sector, originally Shell Petroleum and now Reinessance; and the Ogoni community, led by MOSOP,” he clarified.
“Regarding the leadership structure of HYPREP and the trust fund, it is essential that each stakeholder group appoints its own representatives. Just as the federal government does not select representatives for the oil companies on these boards, it similarly has no authority to appoint members on behalf of the Ogoni people,” Pyagbara concluded.
