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OGELE
CLUB
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International
address- P.O.Box 43684, Brooklyn,
MN 55443, USA. Email: ogeleclub@aol.com
UK – 40 Gordon Road, Ilford, IG1
1SP
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8 March 2006
THE UK REPORT: A BRIEF SUMMARY
On Tuesday we continued our
determination to persuade the International Community to intervene in the Niger
Delta and restrain the government of Nigeria from furthering its economic
exploitation and ecological warfare on the Ijaws and other Niger Delta
nationalities. As well as to prevent the Nigerian authorities from using her
military forces to:
- Continuously invade Ijaw
communities
- Incessantly kill Ijaws openly,
secretly and extra-judiciously
- Commit pogrom on the Ijaw
people
-
Put a
stop to the vandalisation of oil facilities and kidnapping of oil
workers.
We took our protest to the
offices of the British Prime Minister, Hon Tony Blair; the Foreign Secretary,
Rt. Hon Jack Straw; the British Parliament; the European Union; the Secretary
General of the Commonwealth; and the Representative of the United Nation in the
United Kingdom.
Key Officials at the above
offices warmly received the Delegation. Short but very meaningful discussions
took place and the petitions were presented. Officials at 10 Downing Street,
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Members of the Foreign Affairs Committee in
the House of Parliament and the European Union, thanked the Delegation for the
‘well documented petition with relevant supporting data’. The Officials promised
that the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and President of the EU respectively
would get back to the delegation, given the importance of the Niger Delta in
world affairs.
The British Police, though very
co-operative, had insisted on restricting the number of persons to enter each of
the above offices to six. The Police banned the use of placards, cameras and
other electronic communication devices in the Prime Minister’s
Office.
In accordance with the British Police
directives, six persons were selected from Ogele Club International, Ijaw
Peoples’ Association of Great Britain and Ireland [IPA], Bayelsa State Union and
Ijaw Youth Council International [IYC] to deliver the petitions and tell the
Ijaw story to the International community. This honourable task lasted about six
hours. The heavens opened up and the task was done in heavy rain to bless the
mission.
With mission accomplished, Phase
1 of this campaign in the UK came to conclusion. Phase 2 will involve
placard-carrying, massive peaceful demonstrations and hunger strikes if there is
no favourable response to the petitions within a reasonable time.
We call upon every Ijaw persons
to fast and pray between now and the time period we expect a response to the
petitions.
The news has it that the Federal
Government is making further plans to invade Ijaw communities with its weapons
of mass destruction – submarines, gunboats, shells, and bombs – in the pretence
of searching for ‘militants’ [Punch 7/3/2006], and the House of Representatives
Committee on Defence had told the military ‘to move in with the might conferred
on it by the government and route out the miscreants’ [THISDAY 8/3/2006]. This
is a ploy to further destroy Ijaw communities and kill more of us. The
Government used the same excuse to wipe out Odi in 1999, and made Odioma
desolate in 2005. The urgency for the International Community to intervene
cannot be over-emphasised.
We must not relent in our efforts
as the International Community had intervened in similar crises in other parts
of the world. Initial silence by the International Community caused
deteriorating human rights, massacres and environmental abuses in these crises.
Ours should not be allowed to deteriorate to such levels.
What we want the International
Community to do is stated in our petition, which include:
- Sending an independent team to
investigate all the killings, maiming, looting, destruction and other human
right abuses by government forces in the Ijaw area
- Conduct a referendum to ascertain
the aspirations and desires of the Ijaw people and other Niger Delta
peoples
- Order the Nigerian government to
withdraw its forces of occupation from the Ijaw area
- Declare the Ijaw area a protectorate of the UN
until all the issues of natural resources ownership and management have been
acceptably determined
- Establish and supervise a
dialogue process between the Ijaws and the government of Nigeria
Finally, we appeal to all Ijaws
in Europe and North America to reach out to their Parliamentarians, Congressmen
and women and Senators to tell the Ijaw experience in Nigeria.
FELIX
TUODOLO
Coordinating
Tel:
+ 44 [0] 7762814461
Email:
okusbaba@yahoo.co.uk
NB: We do apologize to all those who turned up enthusiastically at
Trafalgar Square this afternoon despite the rain but were not selected for the
movement. Thanks, this is the spirit. Your time will come soon. We shall bring
you report from the USA and Republic of Ireland later.
Attached are some of the pictures
from Tuesday.
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OGELE
CLUB
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Nigeria -
P.O.Box
11384,
Port
Harcourt,
Rivers
State. Tel:
08034746918.
International
address-
P.O.Box
43684,
Brooklyn,
MN
55443,
USA. Email: ogeleclub@aol.com
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TO:
20 FEBRUARY 2006
1. THE SECRETARY
GENERAL
UNITED
NATIONS
1ST
AVENUE AT 46TH
STREET
NEW YORK, NY 10017
2. THE
PRESIDENT
EUROPEAN UNION
1049 BRUSSELS
BELGIUM
3.PRESIDENT GEORGE W.
BUSH
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA
4. PRIME MINISTER TONY
BLAIR
PRIME MINISTER OF THE
UNITED
KINGDOM
5. PRESIDENT JACQUES
CHIRAC
PRESIDENT OF FRANCE
6. PRIME MINISTER JONICHIRO
KOIZUMI
PRIME MINISTER OF JAPAN
7. CHANCELLOR ANGELA
MERKEL
CHANCELLOR OF FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF
GERMANY
Sir,
Niger
Delta: The Need for Immediate and Urgent International
Intervention
May we, on the
mandate of the over twelve [12] million Ijaw people, once more draw your
attention to the despicable situation in the Ijaw territory of Nigeria and
request your urgent intervention before an entire tribe is annihilated from the
surface of the earth. As you are reading this appeal, the situation is becoming
an admix of that of Darfur and Iraq, where several persons are being openly and
secretly killed, people thrown into detention without trial, property is being
looted, communities being invaded and destroyed by soldiers occupying the entire
breath and length of the Ijaw territory in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria; and
some elements of weak resistance by some local groups engaged in kidnapping of
oil-workers and destruction of oil-facilities.
Some of these
events you may never see in the news. There have been progressively intensifying
air raids; with shelling and mortaring of Ijaw communities by the government
forces. Four Ijaw communities - Perezouweikoregbene, Seitorububo, Olapogbene and
Seingbene - were almost wiped out between February 16 and 19, 2006 (an average
of one community per day). Many people
have been made homeless and have become refugees in other communities
[Appendices 3, 4, and 5]. In addition, nine oil-workers were kidnapped and
unknown persons have destroyed several oil facilities on Saturday 17 February
2006 [Appendix 7]. This is the second episode of hostage
taking and damaging of oil facilities this year, and it reveals a new dangerous
dimension by local people to defend themselves. These new strategies adopted by
some groups in the region are the results of decades of deafening silence by the
International Community to the injustice, oppression, marginalisation,
deprivation and environmental devastation going on in the Ijaw area. The time
for international intervention to stem further escalation is
now.
There is a silent
war going on - for air raids, land invasion, mortaring and shelling of
communities cannot be described otherwise. The Nigerian government has continued
to deploy increasing number of troops and weapons of war to the Ijaw territory.
The raids on the Ijaw communities have not ceased either, although President
Obasanjo had just given a temporary order to stop the raid on Ijaw communities.
That is a clear evidence of the fact that extra-judicial killings have been
taking place in the Ijaw territory [Appendix 6]. Yet, the International
Community appears not to be interested in the happenings in the Ijaw
territory.
The Ijaw territory
has been under one siege after the other - military, economic and environmental
for decades. We do not need to remind you of the high level of poverty, the
ecological warfare occasioned by the activities of the multinational oil
companies, the loss of livelihood, the negligence by government and serious
underdevelopment of the Niger Delta area despite being the source of about 90%
of the wealth of Nigeria. Your turning a blind eye to all the atrocities going
on in the Niger Delta is one of the reasons the situation has continued to
deteriorate. Without international
intervention, the situation will be worse than Darfur with attendant
consequences for regional stability and the global economy. The logical outcome
of non-intervention is that the resistance of the people will be similar to that
of East Timor, Iraq and Palestine.
The International
Community paid some scant attention to the problems in the Niger Delta when
Kenule Saro-Wiwa was executed in 1995; nothing meaningful was done for the Niger
Delta even then. Since the execution of Kenule Saro-Wiwa, do you know that the
pogrom on the Ogonis was extended to other ethnic nationalities especially the
(Ijaw ethnic nationality) by the Nigerian government; that the events in Darfur
[Sudan] is playing out in the Niger Delta, where there is an intent to wipe out
a people because of the rich natural resources in the area; that between 1999
and 2006, government forces have killed over five thousand Ijaws when they
invaded the following Ijaw communities:
· Odi
· Odioma
· Kaiama, Ovu, Liama, Okpoama,
Obioku, Yenagoa, Amarata, Ekeki, Opolo, Agudama, Epebu, Oluashiri, Okolobiri,
Mbiama, Azuzama, Ologoama
· Oboro, Ogodobiri, Ojobo,
Peretorugbene, Warri Corner, Okerenkoko, Torugbene, Ogbudugbudu, Ogulagha,
Odimodi, Okerenkoko
· Okigbene, Olugbobiri, Olugboboro,
Ikebiri, Nembe, Twon, Ferebaghagbene
· Opia, Ikenyan, Okokodiagbene,
Ogbe-Ijo, Izon-Burutu, Ekeremor-Zion
· Sagbama, Aven, Patani,
Amabulu, Peremabiri, Obama, Fish
Town,
Koluama
· Okrika, Bonny, Ataba, Iyak,
Omelema, Otari, Degema, Bakana, Kula
· Soku, Elem-Sangama, Opobo,
Abuloma, Amadi-ama, Bille, Belema, Buguma
[See appendices 1,
2, 8- 16 for supporting evidence]
Yet the situation
is not beyond remedy. The International Community intervened in the internal
crises of other countries. Specifically, the International Community intervened
in cases similar to the present situation in the Ijaw area of Nigeria in
- Congo [1960
- 1964]
- Cyprus
[1964]
- Angola [1991
- 1995]
- El Salvador
[1991 - 1995]
- Western
Sahara [1991 - present]
- Georgia
[1993 - present]
- Kosovo [1999 -
present]
- Sierra Leone
[1999 - present]
- DR Congo [1999 -
present]
- Liberia
[2003 - present]
- Ivory Coast
[2004]
The situation in
the Ijaw area of Nigeria is deteriorating daily. You must not allow our
situation to become unredeemable before you intervene. Your urgent attention is
needed now to stop the:
· Annihilation of the Ijaw ethnic
nationality
· Ecological
warfare
· Economic
exploitation
· Oppression of our
people
· Hostage-taking
· Destruction of oil
facilities
This you can do
by:
- Sending an
independent team to investigate all the killings, maiming, looting, destruction
and other human right abuses by government forces in the Ijaw
area
- Conduct a
referendum to ascertain the aspirations and desires of the Ijaw people and other
Niger Delta peoples
- Order the Nigerian
government to withdraw its forces of occupation from the Ijaw
area
- Declare the Ijaw area a protectorate of the UN
until all the issues of natural resources ownership and management have been
acceptably determined.
- Establish and
supervise a dialogue process between the Ijaws and the government of
Nigeria
PLEASE INTERVENE NOW!
Signed:
FELIX
TUODOLO
Coordinating
Tel: + 44 [0]
7762814461
email:
okusbaba@yahoo.co.uk
CC
- HUMAN RIGHTS
WATCH
- AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL
- FRIENDS OF THE
EARTH INTERNATIONAL
APPENDIX
- Pictures of the
destruction of Odi by government forces
- Pictures of the
destruction of Odioma by government forces
- News reports on the
recent invasion of Ijaw communities by soldiers
- News reports on the
recent invasion of Ijaw communities by soldiers
- News reports on the
recent invasion of Ijaw communities by soldiers
- News report on
President Obasanjo ordering JTF to stop raiding Ijaw
communities
- Newspaper reports
on the recent invasion of Ijaw communities by soldiers
- Newspaper reports
on the recent hostage palaver
- ERA report on
Soldiers killing of Ijaw youths at Ekulama
- Military invasion
of Liama
- 2483 casualties at
Odi, ERA report
- Human Rights Watch
report on the Odi invasion
- Report on the
invasion of Odioma
- Human Rights Watch
report on the military attacks on Opia and Ikiyen
- Human Rights Watch
report on the military crack-down at Yenagoa, Kaiama, Ovu, Amarata, Sagbama
etc
- Chronological
account of the different killing of Ijaws at Bonny, Okrika, Ogulagha,
Port
Harcourt, Peremabiri,
etc
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OGELE
CLUB
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Nigeria- P.O.Box 11384, Port
Harcourt, Rivers State. Tel: 08034746918. International address- P.O.Box
43684, Brooklyn, MN 55443, USA. Email: ogeleclub@aol.com
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Briefings on the Odioma genocide
2
DATE:
Thursday, 24 February 2005
SUBJECT:
Soldiers comb forest for Odioma indigenes
The
Joint Task Force [JTF] of Nigerian Army and Navy officers that invaded Odioma
with four gunboats and several vessels and burnt down the community last
Saturday are acting not only as an “army of occupation” but also as soldiers of
“operation wipe out.” Yesterday, community indigenes that escaped to
neighbouring communities reported that the soldiers are presently combing the
forest bordering Odioma in search of persons who are taking refuge there. One
person was reported to have been killed during the combing yesterday. This means
that those that escaped to the forest are further being driven into the swamps
and creeks, which in most cases is infested with mosquitoes and is almost
inhabitable. More deaths are likely not only from the bullets of the guns of
soldiers but from starvation and diseases.
A community spokesperson, Philemon Dickson, told Ogele:
“The soldiers are combing everywhere in the bush and shooting
sporadically at any moving object. We don’t know what we have done to deserve
all this. More persons are going to die, and Odioma will be completely wiped
out. Please help us. We need help. Try and do something to save those of us in
the bushes still alive. We are too small a community to loose lives like this.
We will be finished”
Also yesterday, the Ijaw Youth Council [IYC] insisted that the
soldiers must be withdrawn from the community and adequate measures be taken to
stop further killings and destruction. A delegation of the IYC comprising
Emmanuel Oyinfie Jonjon [President], Felix Tuodolo [Emeritus President] and Mike
Wenibowei [Chairman, Central Zone] met with the Governor of Bayelsa State, Chief
DSP Alamieyeseigha. The government have agreed to immediately send relief
materials to the community. The relief materials are expected to get to Odioma
today with the support of the IYC.
Meanwhile, SHELL
whose operation at Owukubu is the cause of the conflict in the area has kept
mute at the happenings in the area. Also military sources claimed that the JTF
have recovered the boat that was conveying the 12 persons [including four
Councillors from Nembe LGA] that were killed. The boat was hidden in Odioma
creek, claims the military source.
SOME FACTS TO NOTE
·
Odioma is small Nembe community in Brass LGA of Bayelsa state.
·
SHELL discovered oil in the area known as Owukubu in about 1998.
·
Odioma and Obioku communities are claiming ownership of Owukubu.
·
The dispute over the ownership of Owukubu has not been resolved before SHELL
started operation at Owukubu in January 2005.
·
The killing of 12 persons [including four councillors of Nembe LGA] on 3rd
February 2005 is strongly linked to the struggle over the ownership of
Owukubu.
·
The neither police nor government have been unable to apprehend the culprits of
the above crime.
·
The police and government have failed in the past to apprehend such criminals in
the past.
·
Whenever both government and police fail to perform their duties properly under
such circumstances, they punish or destroy whole communities if the crime is
committed in an Ijaw area.
- Ijaw
communities that have been invaded and destroyed by the Nigerian army in the
immediate past when the police have failed in their responsibilities include
Odi, Ogodobiri, Ogbudugbudu, Asantuwagbene, Itagbene, Aza-ama Zion, Idegbene,
Ayanogbene, and Adagbaras.
OUR DEMANDS
1.
Immediate supply of relief materials including drugs, food, water and building
materials to Odioma, Obioku, Ibidi and neighboring towns.
2.
Immediate and unconditional demilitarisation of Odioma community, AND the rest
of the Ijaw territory. Withdrawal of the military from Odioma will enable the
return of persons still hiding in the forest and swamps, thus saving
lives.
3.
Proper and unbiased investigation and trial of those responsible for the killing
of the 12 persons [including the four Councillors of Nembe LGA] that were on a
peace mission.
4.
Establishment of an independent arbitrator to settle all land disputes between
Odioma and neighbouring communities, and all other land disputes between
communities in the Niger Delta.
This Brief
is published by the Information Bureau of the Ogele
Club.
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OGELE CLUB
Nigeria -
P.O. Box 11384, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Tel:
08034746918
International - P.O. Box 43684, Brooklyn, MN 55443, USA.
Email: ogeleclub@aol.com
June 29, 2003
PRESS STATEMENT
FUEL INCREASE: A
FURTHER STRANGULATION OF THE NIGER DELTA
PEOPLE
The Ogele club, a socio-political mass movement for the
advancement of the Ijaw people, met on Sunday 29th June 2003 to critically
examine the recent announcement of the federal government to increase the pump
price of fuel and the intended action of the Nigeria Labour Congress [NLC], and
the effect such steps by government will have on the Niger Delta people,
especially the Ijaws. Also perused are the reasons proffered by government for
the increase - steady supply of petroleum products, stop artificial scarcity,
stop illegal activities, improve the efficiency of the refineries, better
competition in the international market, implementation of more people oriented
projects etc. We observe that these were similar reasons proffered by this
government when it increase the pump price of fuel from eleven naira [=N=11.00]
to twenty-two naira [=N=22.00] to twenty-six naira [=N=26.00] and now forty
naira [=N=40.00] per litre. Yet, the objectives of these increases were never
achieved in all the past attempts. These reasons, in our view, are not cogent
enough for any increase. Such reasons border on the lack of effective management
and monitoring in the petroleum industry, severe acute shortage (SAS) of good
governance in the polity and the prevalence of corruption in the system
perpetuated and condoned by our leaders.
An increase in the pump price of
petroleum products, coming at this time shows that government is insensitive to
the plight of the people, as the masses will suffer more from the effects of
such increase. The people of the Niger Delta, and mostly the Ijaws, will be
worse hit by this increment, as the people are yet to recover from previous
increments. Despite the fact that the Niger Delta produces the bulk of the crude
petroleum, the people were never consulted before the prices of their products
were increase. More so, the people never share in the gains of the increment.
This is injustice of the highest order, and is unacceptable to us. The people
only share in the pains and sorrows of increments of the price of petroleum
products.
It is mostly in the Niger Delta, specifically the Ijaw
territory, that petroleum products are scarcest despite the overbearing
prevalence of the raw material in the area. This scarcity has severely affected
the social, economic and political lives of the people. Some of the effects
include:
- High cost of
petroleum products in the Ijaw territory. This is because it is only BLACK
MARKET prices that exist in the Ijaw areas as there is the total absence of
major marketers and Filling Stations e.g. in all our riverside communities
[except capital cities like Port Harcourt, Yenagoa, Warri] petrol is sold at the
minimum price of fifty naira per litre [=N=50.00/L]. With this new increase, the
BLACK MARKET price will double in the Ijaw areas. That is, a minimum of one
hundred naira per litre [=N=100.00/L]
- High cost of
transportation in all Ijaw communities. Before this new increase, the cost of
travelling within Bayelsa state is expensive e.g. (a) from Yenagoa to Amabulou
is =N=900.00 (b) Yenagoa to Brass is =N=700.00 (c) Yenagoa to Foroupah is
=N=1100.00. In Delta State, from Ojobo to Warri is =N=700.00, Oporoza to Warri
is =N=800.00. In Rivers State, Edo, Ondo, and Akwa Ibom, the situation is the
same for the Ijaw areas. These are all distances not exceeding 150km for which
other parts of the country pay less than five hundred naira [=N=500.00] for
similar distance covered. We despair to even think of the new transport prices
we will be paying by this new increase. Already, all the above prices have
doubled, and our people are afraid of travelling because travelling has become
an exclusive pleasure for only the rich.
- High cost of food
items and other basic necessities of live as the cost of transporting these
stuffs are included in the prices of these goods. Almost every item is 300%
costlier in the Ijaw areas than in other parts of the country. For most families
that depend on the use of kerosene Stoves for cooking [we are so poor that most
of us cannot afford the use of Gas Cookers], starving to death or eating of raw
foodstuff will be our only options. We await the worst with the new increase on
fuel prices. We shudder to think of the multiplier effect this new increase in
the pump price of fuel will have on the socio-economic lives of the Ijaw
people…it will be strangulating! Or is this part of the dividends of democracy?
We are therefore calling on the federal government to show sensitivity to the
plight of the suffering masses by :
- Immediately
rescinding the pump price of fuel to its former price of =N26.00, and seek the
consent of the people from whose land the products are derived from before any
adjustment.
- Ensure effective
management in the petroleum industry and ensure the proper functioning of the
refineries
- Give a public account
[including utilization for the benefit of the people] of the gains or excess
money from the previous increments
- Stop the exploitation
and exploration of oil in the Ijaw territory, if such activity will be used to
increase the hardship of the already suffering Nigerians.
- Allow the people to
have control over their resources - a panacea for the incessant fuel
crisis
- Improve the lives of
the people by creating employment, embarking on meaningful projects, show
transparency, stamp out corruption and provide good governance instead of
elongating poverty via fuel price increases.
To all
Ijaw people, we call on you to support the strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress
(NLC) as their strike this time is for the good of the poor and suffering
masses. In addition, call or write to your representatives in the Senate and
House of Representatives to stop President Obasanjo from further strangulating
the people via an increase in the price of fuel, benefits from which never gets
to the people.
Be firm, be resolute, our day shall soon
come!
FELIX TUODOLO Ogele Club Coordinator
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SECOND TERM: THIS IS YOUR
CHANCE |
Monday, June 9,2003
OGELE CLUB Nigeria - P.O. Box
11384, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Tel: 08034746918 International - P.O. Box
43684, Brooklyn, MN 55443, USA. Email: ogeleclub@aol.com
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TO: 1. His Excellency, Obong Victor Attah
Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State.
2. His Excellency, Chief D.S.P
Alamieyeseigha Executive Governor of Bayelsa State
3. His
Excellency, Chief James Ibori Executive Governor of Delta State
4.
His Excellency, Chief Lucky Igbinedion Executive Governor of Edo
State
5. His Excellency, Dr Peter Odili Executive Governor of
Rivers State
Sirs,
SECOND TERM: THIS IS YOUR CHANCE
We
wish to, once again, draw your attention to our previous letter to you dated
21st March 2003 with the title "BETRAYAL OF THE NIGER DELTA PEOPLE'S ASPIRATION
AND MANDATE." We reminded you that most of your activities in the past four
years were acts detrimental to the desires, aspirations, advancement and
development of the Niger Delta people- particularly the Ijaws. This is the
outcome of our observations and investigations since your assumption of office.
We also beseech you to honestly search and re-appraise yourselves with respect
to your performance these past years, and you will come to the same conclusions
like majority of us - that you have rendered a below average performance. It
will be pertinent to remind you of the following issues-
1. Relationship with the Federal Government
As Executive Governors in the states of the Niger Delta, you
failed to use your position to either positively influence or actualise the
following aspirations of the people:
- President Obasanjo signing of the Onshore / Offshore dichotomy bill as
passed by the National Assembly.
- Full implementation of the minimum constitutional requirement of 13% [and a
maximum of 25%] derivation principle by President Obasanjo which became
effective from May 29, 1999.
- Resource control for the people of the Niger Delta; the practice of true
federalism; and convening of a sovereign National Conference.
- Abrogate all the obnoxious degrees that are depriving the Niger Delta people
of their fundamental rights including their land e.g. Land Use Act, Petroleum
Act, Waterways Degree etc.
- Attract meaningful federal projects to the Niger Delta region.
- Prevent the invasion and destruction of Odi, a Niger Delta community, which
is yet to be rebuilt.
- Finding lasting solution to the reoccurring Warri crisis.
Yet, your party, the PDP, controls the Federal Government including the
National Assembly. The intention of your party for the people of the Niger Delta
is becoming questionable. Is your party really interested in the progress of
Niger Delta people or is the PDP only interested in decimating the land and the
peoples of the region while looting their natural resources?
2. Governance in the Niger Delta Though some persons
must have told you that in the last four years, you performed excellently, the
realities on the ground tells a different story. If they were telling the truth,
then the following would not be the state of affairs in the Niger Delta: The
basic necessities of live are still lacking in almost all of our communities.
Our road networks, if in existence at all, are in deplorable states of disrepair
while portable water is an exclusive pleasure of the rich; the health system is
chaotic and medicines beyond the reach of the poor; the topsy-turvy nature of
the educational system has deprived the people the right to a basic education
while the few that struggle to get educated spend more years/money than required
to acquire their certificates; the people cannot afford decent housing or food
coupled with unemployment, environmental pollution etc. Also, there are several
inter- and intra communal crisis [e.g. the Itsekiri/Ijaw/Urhobo crisis in Warri,
Nembe crisis, Okrika crisis etc] that could have been avoided if there was good
governance in the Niger Delta region. These are indices of non-performance,
irresponsibility, recklessness and lack of good governance. Individuals touting
your "phantom" accomplishments do not love you and the constituency you profess
to serve - they should be avoided if we are to make any progress in the Niger
Delta.
Despite these prevailing circumstances, you secured a second term
during the last elections to lord it over the people for another four years.
Although we strongly disagree with the outcome of the elections [as the results
were criminally manipulated in favour of your incumbent ruling party-the Peoples
Democratic Party], you are seated either by hook or crook as the leaders of the
people. We salute your ingenuity. And it is because of this your "renewed
mandate" that we are making the following comments.
The elections have
come and gone, and you are now in power again. But winning a second term does
not mean you are over the hump. It does not guarantee future wealth, peace of
mind nor does it guarantee life security for the "winners." Kosovo, Bosnia,
Zambia, and Ghana are places to draw lessons from. We see the "second term" for
any ruler as a challenge and great opportunity to serve the people properly. It
is an opportunity to correct the mistakes of the first tenure and address the
ills of society. It is a rare opportunity for any one, and should be well
utilized for the benefit of society. Posterity will not forgive the individual
who fails to capitalize on such great privilege.
It is in this light we
are appealing to you to better the lives of the people of the Niger Delta and
make history by addressing the issues raised in [1] and [2] above. This is an
opportunity to rescue the people from indebtedness; from the shackles of
unemployment, hunger, poverty and underdevelopment; and hopelessness that
characterised your last four years in office. It is a chance for accountability,
political responsibility and good governance. In order to partly achieve this,
you must be careful in selecting those who must govern with you in your cabinet.
We therefore challenge you to appoint honest, disciplined, impartial and
incorruptible persons instead of sycophants.
On the other hand, you may
choose to further enslave the people via unnecessary loans, reckless financial
deals, embezzlement of public funds, phantom and elephantine projects, personal
aggrandizement and enrichment [including family members].
The choice is
yours. There is no greater opportunity than this. And we, the people are
watching.
This is your chance!
FELIX TUODOLO KIME ENGOZU
TEKENA BEREGHA VIVIAN JUMBO
Cc Chief Olusegun
Obasanjo President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
Chief Olusegun
Agagu Executive Governor, Ondo State.
The above is for your attention
and necessary action
also.
About OGELE CLUB
Ogele Club works with
other Ijaw patriots to advance the objectives of the Kaiama Declaration and the
interests of Ijaw land. The club is a coalition of individuals and groups
dedicated to the principles of the right of a people to choose their leaders.
Ogele Club works for the emergence of accountable, responsive and responsible
leadership in Ijawland. Ogele Club membership is open to all Ijaws that share
the club's ideology and possess the necessary will and means to contribute to
the club's progress.
Aims * To be in the forefront of the struggle to
emancipate Ijaw land from internal and external subjugation; by working with
like minds to change the political landscape in Ijawland for the better. * To
learn and share strategies for the economic empowerment of the Ijaw people *
To help transform the lives of Ijaw people by working for the emergence of
visionary political leadership, making relevant input for the human and
infrastructural development of Ijaw territories * To network with other
progressive minded Ijaw professionals, politicians, elders, and
activists.
Objectives * To work for the actualization of the spirit
and letter of the Kaiama Declaration and all other similar declarations of other
Niger Delta nationalities * To help empower the people of Ijawland
politically and economically * To be actively involved in the process of
identifying and supporting the right candidates for elective offices and other
strategic positions in Ijawland * To prevent from attaining positions of
leadership those individuals not committed to the upliftment of Ijaws; by
identifying and supporting individuals of reputable character to seek elected
positions in Ijaw land and by running political and issue- based awareness
campaigns in Ijaw land * To contain individuals in positions of leadership,
who are found to be acting in ways detrimental to the Ijaw peoples, by utilizing
both legal options and mass action to hold such leaders accountable for their
actions and or inactions * To promote economic development and advocate for
the establishment of infrastructure necessary for the economic development of
Ijaw Nation * To advocate for good ethics in business, politics and society
as a whole * To collaborate with other peoples' empowerment and development
centered organizations in the Niger Delta and beyond * To support the Ijaw
nation's struggle for control of its resources and its rightful status within
the Nigeria federation * To draft and help implement Ijaw-centered platform
for the benefit of Ijaw peoples * To support and strengthen the Ijaw National
Congress [INC] and Ijaw Youth Council [IYC], the umbrella organizations of the
Ijaw people.
OGELE
CLUB
Nigeria-P.O.Box 11384, Port Harcourt,
Rivers State. Tel: 08034746918. International office- P.O.Box 43684,
Brooklyn, MN 55443, USA. Email: ogeleclub@aol.com
6th March 2003
His Excellency, Obong Victor
Attah Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State.
His Excellency, Chief
D.S.P Alamieyeseigha Executive Governor of Bayelsa State
His
Excellency, Chief James Ibori Executive Governor of Delta State
His
Excellency, Chief Lucky Igbinedion Executive Governor of Edo State
His
Excellency, Dr Peter Odili Executive Governor of Rivers State
His
Excellency,
BETRAYAL OF THE NIGER DELTA PEOPLE'S ASPIRATION AND
MANDATE
We are writing to you because you govern a state where Ijaws have
ancestral homes. We have been watching with keen interest the political
atmosphere, which has been characterized by the evolvement and metamorphosis of
personal and selfish politician interest by politicians given the mandate to
protect and defend the interest of the people. This egoistic tendency, appear to
be the order of the day in recent political history of Nigeria. But when certain
persons, or group of persons, divert from this route, forsaking personal
interest for communal interest, such persons or groups need to be commended and
encouraged. It is in this light that we bear no apparent grudge against: (a)
The Governors and Houses of Assembly in Northern Nigeria for introducing the
Sharia law, whose bill was sponsored by the governors and passed by their
various houses of Assembly. This is the desire of the majority of their
people. (b) The Kano Elders Forum and 19 Northern governors for their selfish
and parochial statement that General Obasanjo should not sign the
onshore/offshore oil bill. This, of course, is the position of the majority of
their people, which they their leaders must protect.
It is for the same
reason that the people of the Niger Delta were thrown into jubilation when in
2001, you the governors of the South- South, parliamentarians and other leaders
met in the ancient city of Benin and pronounced your support and commitment to
the struggle for Resource Control. According to you, "for this is the wish of
our people." For once, you appeared to have taken over the people's struggle and
to champion it. Little did we know that the people's struggle was being hijacked
to promote selfish interest, and to destroy it. After your pronouncement, no
concerted effort was made to sponsor and pass any bill on any of the vital
issues regarding Resource Control in the different states you govern. Instead,
you watched and tacitly supported General Obasanjo when he did the following:
- Politicised the development of the Niger Delta by stalemating all
developmental projects in the Niger Delta for the first fifteen months of his
government, where the bill on NDDC was introduced with procedural abnormalities.
And it took over fifteen months for the National assembly to detect and amend
some of the abnormalities, and whose bill he refused to sign until the National
Assembly overrode his veto and passed the NDDC act.
- Dragged the people and governments of the Niger Delta littoral states to the
Supreme Court on their agitation for resource control, while keeping silent on
the issue of introduction of Sharia law by some states in the north.
- Refused to abolish the obnoxious land-use decree he introduced into the
constitution on his first advent to the headship as Head of State of Nigeria.
- Delayed the implementation of the provision of the 1999 constitution on
derivation [not less than 13%] for eight months on assumption of office.
- Invaded and destroyed a Niger Delta community - Odi. Till today he is still
unrepentant, unremorseful, unapologetic, and has made no attempt at rebuilding
the community. On the other hand, Mr President did not destroy communities that
committed "similar crimes" in other parts of the country, and for the only one
he destroyed, he has apologised and set up a commission of enquiry.
- And has recently refused to sign the bill on the onshore/offshore dichotomy
passed by the national assembly for the good and stability of the country.
- Failed to provide protection for citizens of the Niger Delta despite, their
complaints of threats to their lives.
Sadly, while politicians from other parts of the country insisted and
bargained for the interest of their people during the PDP primaries before
supporting General Obasanjo for his second presidential aspiration, and on the
heat of his refusal to sign the bill on offshore/onshore dichotomy, you only
bargained to secure your party tickets for your second tenure ambition- your
only condition for supporting General Obasanjo! After securing your party
gubernatorial tickets, you now proceeded to work assiduously for the candidature
of General Obasanjo. While all these events are awash in several national
dailies, none of you have refuted them.
Despite all the above, you have
met again with Mr President to amend the bill on onshore/offshore dichotomy to
further deprive your people of their natural resources, even the little
entrusted to you by virtue of 13% derivation you have failed to properly
manage.
We view these actions as a betrayal of the trust, confidence and
mandate given to you by the people when they "elected" you into office. You have
again betrayed the people to secure a ticket for your second term ambitions. In
this light, we demand the following:
- That you immediately resign from your offices, as you no longer represent
our interest but yourselves.
- That you return the gubernatorial ticket of your party back to the party as
your ticket was negotiated for selfish interest instead of communal interest.
- That you immediately render an account of your stewardship, especially as it
concerns the management of the 13% derivation fund accruing to your state.
- That you stop further pronouncements on resource control, as your recent
actions show your non-commitment to its ideals.
Failing these, we shall work with all the peoples of the Niger Delta, whose
interest you have mortgaged to obtain your tickets, to ensure the total defeat
of your party in the Niger Delta.
We thank you for your anticipated
cooperation.
Sign: Felix Tuodolo Rowland
Ekperi Francis Ebikefe Porbeni
Cc (1) His Excellency,
Chief Adebayo Adefarati Executive Governor of Ondo State. (2) Chief Audu
Ogbeh National Chairman, PDP
|
Second Term
Open Letter to
the Governors
FUEL
INCREASE: A FURTHER STRANGULATION OF THE NIGER DELTA
PEOPLE |