Mkpoikana Udoma 01 August 2017, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – The socio-cultural body of Ogoni people in Rivers State, the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People, MOSOP, has described as false the allegation that the federal government losses 150,000bpd of crude oil due to destruction of the Trans-Niger Pipeline, TNP, in Ogoniland.
Recall that the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, recently said that suspected militants vandalised the Trans-Niger pipeline in Ogoniland last Monday, reducing NNPC’s crude oil production by 150,000 barrels per day.
But the President of MOSOP, Mr. Legborsi Pyagbara, described the allegation by NNPC as a plot by the federal government to blackmail Ogoni to commence the production of crude oil in Ogoniland.
Pyagbara, in a live radio programme in Port Harcourt, denied any attack on the pipeline, and challenged the NNPC to point out the particular place in Ogoni where the TNP was vandalised.
“We believe this allegation is a complete blackmail of the people of Ogoni, if not, NNPC wouldn’t have taken that line.
“Because if you look at what has happened, NNPC has not been able to pin point a particular place in Ogoni that the vandalism of the TNP took place. They did not point out that it happened in Gokana, Khana, Eleme or Tai. So which part of Ogoni did the vandalism take place?
“This is why we said this is mere blackmail and it is to justify their attempt to enter into Ogoni to commence oil production and it’s related activities.”
The MOSOP leader also warned that Ogonis attempt to forcefully commence oil production in Ogoniland be resisted by the people.
He explained that Ogonis will only allow resumption of oil production in Ogoniland after an exhaustive talk with the Ogoni people.
“If anything happens in Ogoni today, Shell and federal government should be held responsible. I have said it repeatedly that Ogonis are not saying there will be no oil production, what we are saying is that something happened in Ogoni 23years ago, and these issues have not been addressed.
“Now they want to go through the back-door to resume oil production, they have been moving from one community to another to further divide the Ogoni communities against themselves.
“We are not saying there cannot be oil production, what we are saying is that there must be discussion with the communities, so that we look at what they are offering in terms of community development agreement, employment, revenue sharing agreement amongst other things which are currently being done all over the world.”