Besides occupying the SPDC facility, the people have also employed radio jingles and other forms of publicity to draw the attention of the Rivers State and Federal Governments to their demand.
Secretary of the community, Awu Welse, in a recent interview with newsmen, said the people would not leave the flow station until their demands were met.
He said; “We are using this opportunity to inform the general public that it is the same people that gave out the land to Shell in 1980 that are now occupying the flow station and shut the flow station the other day. If Shell say they are the ones that shut it down, let them come and open it. We are going to be in this flow station until we settle this matter.”
He condemned statement by SPDC that the closure of the flow station by the indigenous oil producing people was illegal occupation, saying that Kula had the constitutional right to their natural resources.
He also denied the claim by Shell that it was up to date with its social responsibility commitment to the people of Belema, challenging “SPDC to come with NNPC, DPR as well as people from the Presidency to come and see the community called Belema and know how far SPDC has developed this community.”
A disagreement has been brewing between multinational oil giant-Shell Petroleum Development Company SPDC and indigenous oil producing community of Belema in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State over issues relating to neglect of the community in the provision of social amenities by SPDC.
While the community is claiming total neglect by Shell for about 37 years of operation in the community, Shell claims that it had invested over N300-million worth of community development project in the community within the last 10 years.
and then