The Socio-Economic Accountability Project (SERAP) has blamed oil and gas companies operating in the Niger Delta for environmental degradation in the region.
The group’s position is contained in a report commissioned by SERAP titled “We are all vulnerable. How lack of transparency and accountability is fueling human rights violations in the Niger Delta’’.
It called on the federal government to put in place a legal framework to ensure that oil and gas companies and other key players recognize the right of the people in the Niger Delta to a clean and healthy environment.
SERAP urged the government to ensure the actualization of such a framework, first in the Niger Delta and later in the country as a whole.
Dr. Bunmi Afinowi, a lecturer in the University of Lagos (UNILAG) Faculty of Law, presented the report to the general public in Lagos.
Afinowi stated in the report that the extensive social, economic, and environmental degeneration in the region has largely affected the lifestyles and wellbeing of the people.
She stated that when violations occur against the rights of the people of the area, individuals, communities, and Chief Security Officers (CSOs) are able to seek redress in the courts, both local and international.
Afinowi, who is also a research consultant, insisted that there is no justification for the Niger Delta region, which produces the resources on which the nation depends, to live in abject poverty while oil and gas companies violate the rights of the local population.
She lamented that the state of the region is constantly a paradox of circumstances, noting that despite the wealth it holds and the fact that it provides for the entire nation, it remains deeply in the grips of squalor, poverty, and environmental degradation.
The report recommended periodic engagements with legal and environmental experts and policymakers to review and strengthen existing laws, regulations, and policies related to the oil and gas sector in terms of resource management and extractive activities.
It urged the federal government to also create a platform or avenue for sharing information related to oil and gas activities, revenue distribution, and environmental impact assessments with local communities.
“There is a need to also develop and distribute educational materials to raise awareness about the industry’s effects on communities and the importance of transparency,” Afinowi said.
The director-general of the Bureau of Public Service Reform, Dr. Dasuki Arabi, noted in a goodwill message that the strategic importance of the Niger Delta cannot be overemphasized.
He said this account explains why various administrations have taken bold steps to ensure the development of the area.
He said one of the bold steps to address the issues in the region was the establishment of the Niger Delta Development Commission to drive sustainable development in the area.
Hon. Funkekeme Solomon, who represented the Rivers State governor, Sinminalayi Fubara, said that it is important that the area that brings the resources upon which the country is dependent is protected and made safe.
He said that the terrain in the region is different and difficult to obtain from other areas, noting that the amount spent constructing a road in Abuja, for instance, is far below what is spent in the area.
He commended SERAP for the publication, which he said exposed how corruption has undermined development in the Niger Delta.
President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), Eze Anaba, said in a goodwill message that there was a need to ensure that resources from the Niger Delta region were used to develop the area.
He stressed the need for transparency and accountability in government at all levels, saying this should be used to promote good governance, civic participation, and respect for the rule of law.
Anaba said the media has a laudable role to play to achieve this objective.
“Section 22 of the 1999 constitution, as amended, stated the roles that members of the profession are expected to play in contributing to the efforts to promote transparency and accountability in the Niger Delta in particular.”
In a welcome address, SERAP deputy director Kolawole Okuwadare remarked that the country is definitely poor, with some 122 million Nigerians living in poverty.
According to him, corruption has been the major contributing factor in making Nigeria one of the poorest nations in the world.
He said trillions from oil resources impoverished Nigerians as they ended up in private pockets.
