A group of ex-artisanal refiners in Ogoniland has condemned the action of some youths who staged a protest on Saturday at the Ministry of Environment in Abuja, claiming to be members of the group demanding their rights.
Chairman of the group, Terry Ereba, while reacting protest in Port Harcourt at the weekend urged security agencies to call the protesters to order accusing contractors that failed to secure contracts from Hydro Carbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) of engineering the protest.Â
Ereba said “We are calling on the security agencies to invite all those people that protested in Abuja. The protest was intended to dent the image of the Ogoni people. We the real Ogoni Indigenes are supporting the leadership of Dr Ferdinand Giadom, as Coordinator of HYPREP”.
Similarly, a former youth president of the B-Dere community in Gokana Local Government and Chairman, Human Resources of the Ex-Â Artisanal Refiners, Humphrey Duncan, said the protesters were imposters hired by alleged greedy members of the area for selfish interest.
“Tuanwi Atani from K-Dere community approached me that I should follow them for the protest to cause problem for the HYPREP Coordinator, Ferdinand Giadom but I told him that this man is just six months old in the office and should be given time”, he said.
Duncan added, “Presently, HYPREP has concluded a plan to train 5000 persons in Khana and Eleme and Gokana. They planned to empower the youths after the training of all the LGAs that were formerly involved in the illegal oil refining business.
“But because of their greed, their selfishness, they want to take the contract by force, they went to Abuja to destroy our names. Those people are not part of us, they are not Ex- Artisanal refiners.
“They want to cause problems in Ogoni and I want to use this opportunity to tell the Federal Government of Nigeria that if they want to do the real thing they should come to Port Harcourt, which is the HYPREP office.”
The executives of the National Youth Council of Ogoni People (NYCOP) had on Thursday, also dissociated itself from the same protest.
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In a press statement signed by the President, Barinuazor Emmanuel said; “Protest is only necessary when all grounds of settlement or reaching resolution has failed”.
The group stated that there was never an occasion that their attention was drawn to any misgivings in HYPREP’s office, complaining of the inadequacy of the Coordination Office or its official.
“Innocent and unsuspecting widows and youths were mobilized all the way from Ogoni land to Abuja under the guise that the Honourable Minister for Environment, Mohammed Hassan Abdullahi, called for an audience with them, especially the widows of Ogoni 9; but on arrival they were forced into carrying placards and demonstrating in front of the ministry as protesters.
“This is so absurd, considering the current socio-political situation the country is facing, the difficulty travelling on road from the south to Abuja and risk faced on such journey”.
They alleged that those protesting at Abuja were sponsored by those who are benefiting from contracts to the detriment of the poor Ogoni people.
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