Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The Mothers of Ogoniland have urged the President Tinubu-led government to establish a Federal University of Environment in Ogoniland, Rivers State, to consolidate gains of the cleanup project, environmental justice, and sustainable development.
The group urged the government to build on the progress made in the Ogoni Cleanup Project by investing in sustainable education, proposing that the university be integrated with the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Remediation, CEER, currently under construction in Wiiyakara, Khana Local Government of Rivers State.
The appeal was made in a letter to Hon. Dumnamene Deekor, Member Representing Khana/Gokana Federal Constituency, and signed by the President of the group, Chief Madam Priscilla Vikue, who also demanded the stabilization of the Project Coordinator’s office and review of the Ogoni Power Project.
According to the letter, the university would serve as a hub for advanced research in environmental remediation, sustainability, and renewable energy, which would not only consolidate the gains of the cleanup project but also provide opportunities for capacity development and employment for Ogoni youths.
The Mothers of Ogoniland commended President Bola Tinubu for his commitment to the Ogoni cleanup project, and lauded the project’s progress, noting that the project’s achievements include job creation, shoreline remediation, and the construction of hospitals and Ogoni power project.
The letter reads, “We call for the urgent approval and support of the President to establish the Federal University of Environment, Saakpenwa, in Tai Local Government in Ogoniland. We expect that this institution will be integrated with the CEER to ensure the sustainability of the project for the benefit of the Niger Delta region and the nation.
“The Centre of Excellence for Environmental Remediation, CEER, is HYPREP’s ongoing biggest project and one of the recommendations of the United Nations Environmental Programme Report on the Assessment of Ogoni, which will serve as a hub for advanced research in remediation techniques as well as an archive for the data generated during the Cleanup Project.
“The Ogoni people frown at the recorded instability in HYPREP resulting from arbitrary and incessant changes to the office of the Project Coordinator by past Ministers. This, in turn, affects efforts at consolidating programs, creating uncertainty with other development partners, increasing bureaucracy and bottlenecks, and affecting the completion timeline of contracts.
“We are also particularly concerned about time lag and variation issues, which are directly or indirectly caused by the leadership change. Thus, Ogoni people reject any tendencies to jeopardize efforts to make the Ogoni Clean-Up Programme work and seek the President’s pronouncement on the sacrosanctity of stabilizing the office of the PC of HYPREP, as this will help put the Project on a fast track to completion.
“Moreso, we are elated by Professor Zabbey’s ability to mobilize the Ogoni community and his deep knowledge of environmental science and project management. This has improved the pace of project completion, viz ongoing remediation projects, livelihood programs, and potable water provision, among others. The key stakeholders have urged the Minister to ensure the full implementation of the Local Content Laws with the Clean-up Project, by prioritizing the capacity development of women and youths.
“Similarly, key stakeholders have asked for a review of the approved Ogoni Power Project to be carried out, like the Aba and Bonny Gas turbine models, in collaboration with International Oil Companies and technical partners. This implies that the project should be upgraded from power distribution only to power generation status, leveraging on the enormous gas deposit around the proposed Power Project sites, while urging HYPREP to establish industrial parks in Ogoni to sustain livelihood skills and increase investment in education.
“With a special request, the meeting of the key stakeholders supports a demand for the accruable interest in the Ogoni Trust Fund Investments since 2016 to be channeled into scholarships, personal and professional development, and research grants for Ogoni Scholars at all levels.”
Vikue in the letter further said all Ogoni sons and daughters, leaders, and stakeholders across strata have decided to own the Project and rally around its success, in recognition of the fact that the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project, HYPREP is a product of the struggle of the Ogoni people for environmental justice.
“We thank President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for his sustained interest in and continuation of the Ogoni oil spill clean-up project and other associated programs. The Ogoni people highly appreciate the President’s policy thrust of accelerating the Ogoni cleanup, as prioritized in the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“From the land and shoreline remediation to the Ogoni Specialist Hospital and the Buan Cottage Hospital, the Ogoni Power Project, the construction of the Center of Excellence for Environmental Restoration, livelihood training program for 5,000 Ogonis, International Maritime Organisation 1 & 2 training and certification for community workers, training of community workers in mangrove nursery and entrepreneurship, and various workshops for our people, no doubt, all of these have brought the needed respite to the teeming unemployed Ogoni youths.
“They are actively working on various HYPREP sites. From available statistics, the HYPREP project has created over 7,000 jobs for Ogoni youths and women, thus addressing unemployment and related socio-economic and security concerns.”
