The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has strongly condemned the Nigeria Exploration and Production Limited, NEPL, (formerly NPDC) over plans to forcefully resume oil production in Ogoni without addressing legacy issues including community concerns for development and the environment.
President of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke said the move endangered the lives of the Ogoni people, will incite the state against the Ogoni people, lead to state repression and killing of innocent Ogoni community residents..
He accused the NEPL of attempting to derail current efforts by MOSOP to bring all parties to the Ogoni conflicts to a discussion table with hopes of a mutually beneficial resolution. Nsuke further said the NEPL’s move was not only an attempt to sabotage the push for the operation of an Ogoni Development Authority which is a key demand put forward by the Ogoni people. and frantically address the Ogoni crises of over three decades but attempts to sustain the denial of the rights of the Ogoni people to benefit from their natural endowments.
The MOSOP president urged the NEPL and the Nigerian government to respect the wishes of the Ogoni people, desist from creating unnecessary tension in Ogoni over an issue that MOSOP has already proposed the Ogoni Development Authority as an acceptable path to resolve the problem and have shown willingness to negotiate a settlement. He noted that forcing oil production in Ogoni will only lead to more Ogoni killings with the risk of a spill over to the rest of the Niger Delta who will show solidarity with the oppressed Ogoni people.
He accused the NEPL of planning to repress the people with the force of state rather than allowing a dialogue that will address the concerns of all parties and lead to peace and development.
He warned that MOSOP will mobilize the Ogoni people against the move because it is a threat to the lives and peace of Ogoni communities. Nsuke strongly condemned what he called the NEPL’s insensitivity to the concerns of the Ogoni people and an attempt to sustain Ogoni’s impoverishment through a system of natural resource extraction that completely alienates the future and concerns of the Ogoni people.
“The NEPL was attempting to cage Ogoni and the Niger Delta to perpetual slavery and sustain an economic repression which the region has resisted over the years. That will not be reasonable at this time that we are proposing a model that can address all issues related to conflicts in the Niger Delta region” he said.
While alerting the Ogoni people of a possible military invasion on the orders of the NEPL, the MOSOP leader urged the Ogoni people to be ready for a non-violent resistance against the moves. He assured of MOSOP’s commitment to an inclusive dialogue on its proposals for the operation of the ODA and hopes that the government will embrace a progressive path that takes the people’s concern into perspective.
