President Bola Tinubu is currently meeting with Rivers State Governor Sim Fubara and leaders from Ogoniland at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
According to available information, Governor Fubara arrived at the meeting and was flanked by Senator Lee Maeba. Other members of the delegation include Senators Magnus Abe, Olaka Nwogu, Bennett Birabi Barry, Mpigi, and Joe Poroma, as well as Chief Victor Giadom, Chief Kenneth Kobani, Monsignor Pius Kii, and Leedom Mitee.
Also in attendance are the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari; the Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abba; the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Idris Mohammed; the Minister of Regional Development, Abubakar Momoh; and the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
Although the agenda of the meeting has not officially made know to journalists, a reliable source at Aso Rock hinted that the focus of the meeting will be on Ogoni clean-up project and the resumption of oil exploration in Ogoniland.
This meeting is sequel to the growing calls by a coalition of civil society organizations for the Federal Government to allocate $1 trillion for the cleanup of the Niger Delta and compensate communities for their lost livelihoods before any resumption of crude oil production in Ogoniland.
The demands were made in a joint statement issued by Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), and the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) which the leadership of all the groups were all signatories to the release.
The groups expressed concern over the government’s reported plans to restart oil activities in the region, describing it as a disregard for environmental justice.
The statement also emphasised the historical environmental devastation in Ogoniland, as documented in the 2011 UNEP report, which detailed widespread pollution of land, water, and air. The coalition criticized the government for failing to fully implement the UNEP recommendations or prioritise the environmental restoration of the area.
