Ogoni Martyrs Day: MOSOP harps on Ogoni Development, Exoneration for Saro-Wiwa, others

The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has charged the people of Ogoni to work towards the realization of Ken Saro-Wiwa’s vision for Ogoni. MOSOP further called on the Nigerian government to review the tribunal judgment which sentenced the nine Ogonis to death in 1995 including  Ken Saro-Wiwa, John Kpuinen, Baribor Bera, Saturday Doobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levura, Felix Nuate and Barinem Kiobel.

President of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke who made the call during his address to the mammoth crowd which gathered in Ogoni for a candle night vigil to mark the memorial of the 1995 hangings. He said Ken Saro-Wiwa and all Ogoni martyrs lost their lives in the cause of fighting for justice for the Ogoni people and left a wish that we pursue this cause and that we clear his name to assert his innocence.

 

He said Ogoni is making two simple demands on the Nigerian state namely. We demand  the exoneration of the nine Ogonis who were executed on November 10, 1995 and secondly, we demand Nigeria’s support for the successful operation of the Ogoni Development Authority.

 

Nsuke emphasized that while the Ogoni people demand that the names of the martyrs be cleared, we also must not lose focus on the primary goal for which the Ogono cause was initiated. We must support current MOSOP initiatives to address the underdevelopment that plagued our society, depreciated our creativity, degraded our environment, dehumanized our personalities and took away our dignity.

 

“Tonight, we have sent two messages to the Nigerian government and the Nigerian peoples. That we won’t abandon Ken Saro-Wiwa and other martyrs even in death and we won’t run nor  compromise from our goal to address underdevelopment in Ogoni” Nsuke said on Wednesday night.

 

“If we fail to pursue the vision of Saro-Wiwa which we have captured in the proposed Ogoni Development Authority, then we would have failed him and all those who have sacrificed their lives for us and we would have truly disappointed the generations we will hand over to” Nsuke told the crowd.

 

In Ogoni Development Authority, every Ogoni child, boy, girl, man, woman has a place and a future that is bright and full of hope. We must pursue that goal if the sacrifices of people like Ken Saro-Wiwa will truly make any meaning in our lives” he said.

 

Nsuke accused the oil companies especially the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) of sponsoring conflicts in Ogoni through oil-industry sponsored mushroom groups in desperate attempts to force oil production in the area noting that MOSOP remains strongly opposed to unnegotiated oil resumption or any attempt to use some remotely groups who pose as people-based initiative with the primary aim of forcing oil production in Ogoni.

 

“While we remain open to discuss our proposals, we are averse to back door moves and clandestine decisions that seek to shortchange our common interests.”

 

While assuring the people of ultimate victory, the MOSOP President thanked the Ogoni people for sustaining the struggle and its non-violent approach for over three decades urging them to preserve its principles. He assured that partners around the world were watching keenly.