For many years, illegal refineries, where crude oil gotten as a result of bunkering is refined to finished product, have been the pastime of many, especially the youths, in the oil rich regions of the country. The activities of these refineries become even more noticeable in the face of the perennial fuel scarcity the nation has suffered in recent times. The bubble however, burst on Friday, April 22, when one of such illegal refineries went aflame in the agrarian villages of Egbema in Imo State, where over 100 persons were burnt to death in the ensuing conflagration. In this piece, JOHNKENNEDY UZOMA and HENDRIX OLIOMOGBE bring the recap of the horror and how the Edo State government has tapped into the local technology by establishing a modular refinery in the state.
The entire 16 villages of Egbema in the oil bearing Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State were on the faithful night of April 22, 2022, thrown into mourning over the sudden death of their sons and daughters as well as their beloved ones and family members in the recent explosion that rocked the communities.
The ugly incident which occurred around 11pm at Kpofire illegal bunkering/refining site situated at Abezi and its neighbouring Okwuzi village, took everyone by surprise as it was the first time in the history of bunkering business in the community such an incident would be happening.
Unfortunately, scores of persons from the entire 16 villages cutting across Egbema land perished alongside with other people from Rivers State, some part of Imo state, Anambra, Bayelsa and Hausa who were burnt beyond recognition.
Some villagers in Egbema recorded 10 deaths of sons and daughters while others had 15, five and 20 among others.
Also burnt and destroyed in the explosion included an uncountable number of vehicles and motorcycles belonging to some of the business men and women including the youths who lost their lives in the explosion.
The fire explosion equally destroyed, apart from human beings, properties and facilities of the bunkering business as well as farm land and crops valued at millions of Naira.
Among the persons who lost their lives in the incident included a nursing student Miss. Blessing Ajie, who happened to be a citizen of the community and a member of Emmanuel Anglican Church Abacheke.
The lady was said to have returned from her school and decided to go to the site, possibly to follow others to do business without returning to her parents.
As at the time our correspondent visited the family, the lady had already been buried by her family with tears and sorrow running in the faces of both her parents and other family members.
Though, the mood of the father of the girl Mr. Bravo Ajieh, could not allow him to alter a word as he continued to cry profusely.
Before the incident that resulted in the mass death, Nigerian Tribune discovered that illegal bunkering business has been going on in many locations in both Egbema and Ohaji in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area for quite some years .
Because it turned out to be lucrative business for some of the youths of the oil producing local government area, the attention of the youths of the area were diverted to illegal bunkering and they abandoned other legal trades.
The Chairman of Abacheke Community Mr. Sunday Nduleri, expressed his total regret over the incident. He disclosed that the number of those that died had risen to 200. He said that even some of those who were carried to hospital for medical attention died.
Though he denied knowledge of the number of illegal sites in the land, he said that before the incident occurred, the community had sent out messages warning the youths and people involved in the business to desist from such business but they did not listen.
He regretted the loss of a member of his community, Miss Blessing Ajieh. He used the interview to console the parents and her family members, praying to God to console them.
While blaming the cause of the unfortunate incident on idleness and joblessness, the Community Chairman appealed to the government to as a matter of urgency do something for the youth of the area.
He urged the government to provide the youth with employment and contracts to take their attention away from such illegal business.
Nduleri decried what he described as neglect of Egbema community by the government and the oil companies operating in the area.
According to him, “Egbema land has no road, electricity and good drinking water yet their land produces barrels of oil and gas every year without any development”.
He used the opportunity to appeal to the youths to please calm down and rather join hands in their effort to continue to reach out to the oil companies in their area for them to provide for the community what they ought to for the good of the area.
He enjoined every leader in Abacheke and in the entire Egbema to henceforth go home and do whatever they could to stop the illegal bunkering business in their communities.
The National Youth President of Ohaji in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State, Comrade Chinonye Ugorji described the incident as a sad one.
He told Nigerian Tribune that if there is a way the government could rehabilitate the boys who he said were trained in the Amnesty Programme of former President Yar’adua but they were yet to be incorporated in the programme.
According to him, the youth after they had waited for too long resorted to engage in another means of livelihood in order for them to survive.
The youth president said that “each time you tell these boys to shun the bunkering activities, they will in return ask you what do you want us to do to survive”.
Ugorji described it as unfortunate that nobody, even the government, including the Imo State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (ISOPADEC), which is an interventionist agency, is taking care of the youths.
He said that “today ISOPADEC is no more empowering the youths or supporting them even when the oil producing Local Government Area of Ohaji/Egbema contributes 90 percent of the revenue to the state government”.
The youth president said that if the youth are rehabilitated, the situation would never be the same in the area.
Ugorji said that the number of illegal bunkering sites in Ohaji/Egbema cannot be disputed but the fact remains that if allowed to continue, the adverse effect on every community and villages would be horrible.
He commended the new Army Brigade Commander, who according to him, had dismounted and shut down some of these illegal bunkering sites in Ohaji/Egbema LGA.
The Egbema youth president Mr. Okenya Theadus Mario described the incident as an unfortunate one, saying that he had visited the scene where he discovered that an uncountable number of persons were burnt beyond recognition. He added that some of the burnt corpses were burnt to ashes.
Our correspondent who visited the scene saw burnt corpses, vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles scattered all over the entire area.
Nigerian Tribune learnt on visiting the scene that since the incident occurred, a lot of people had visited the place to see things for themselves, including the member of Imo State House of Assembly representing Ohaji/Egbema State Constituency, Heclus Okoro, among others persons.
Meanwhile the Imo State Government has declared Mr.Okenze Onyenwoke, owner of the illegal refining site located at Abezi forest in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State wanted
Governor Hope Uzodimma through the Commissioner for Petroleum Resources, Goodluck Opiah made a statement when he visited the site.
The State Commissioner who happened to come from Egbema said that the fire consumed the lives of so many youths, adding that apart from the calamity, the act had destroyed the aquatic life of the community adding that the people before now were predominantly farmers and fishermen.
He identified most of the people who were engaging in this act as people from Rivers, Bayelsa and other neigbouring states, adding that it was sabotage for the people to allow the illegal act to continue.
The governor, on behalf of the government of Imo State condoled with the bereaved families while praying to God to give the families of those who lost their lives the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.
An eyewitness and an indigene of the community, who was met at the site, and who identified himself as Mr. Eze Ikedi, said that the incident happened around 11 pm.’
According to him, residents of the area woke up to see the huge flame in the Abazi forest.
When the Nigerian Tribune visited the house of a father, Mr. Uche Okwodu, from Etekwuru in Ohaji/Egbema LGA, who lost a son, Onyekachi, to the disaster, he was completely in a sad mood.
He managed to say that all the effort and series of warnings he gave to his 17year old son failed as he did not listen to him.
He said that Onyekachi took his WAEC examination last year but he lost his certificate in the fire incident that raised his house down last year.
The lawmaker representing Ohaji/Egbema in the Imo State House of Assembly Heclus Okoro, while speaking at the site said from what he had seen, he was speechless. He however, said that he would report back to the governor what he had seen at the site while advising the youths to take what happened as a lesson.
But a source, who craved anonymity, told Nigerian Tribune that the government could not claim ignorance of the existence of the illegal refinery in the locality.
“We are too insincere in this country. How can the government claim not to know that a huge illegal facility like this existed here? How come that in less than 24 hours the incident happened, the government declared the owner wanted? This is our problem in this country. We are not truthful to ourselves,” he bemoaned.
But the Edo State Government, some two years, attacked the problem of illegal refining in the state. With two legal modular refineries, the Edo State Government seems to be in the forefront of checking the twin problems of the perennial scarcity of petroleum products and the numerous illegal refineries in the oil rich creeks of the Niger Delta.
Commissioned last year by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Edo Modular Refinery and Petrochemical Limited, Ologbo, near Benin has the capacity to refine 60,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
The Head of Safety, Health, Security/Community relations, Mr. Segun Okeni,said the refinery has an installed capacity of 1,000 barrels per day in the first phase while the second phase is 6,000 and in the long run will extend it to 60,000 per day.
He said that the modular refinery produces four products with diesel representing about 54 or 55 percent, fuel oil representing about 38 percent, naphta less than 10 percent while the rest is gas to power the processing of the equipment.
Okeni noted that the project would boost the economy of the local community, Edo State, as well as boost the nation foreign exchange as some of the products would be exported.
He added that when the different phases of the project were completed in few years time, it would provide more than 80 percent of diesel requirement in the Nigeria
He disclosed that the company had directly employed more than 300 people and that the majority of the workers are from the host communities.
A joint effort of Peayang Chemical Equipment Corporation (PCC) of China and African Investment Partner (AIP), the refinery will, no doubt, save foreign exchange while the pressure on the nation’s moribund refineries and importation will be contained.
A company source who pleaded anonymity however, disclosed that the facility presently produces only diesel while the rest had been shut down for routine maintenance.
Also in Edo State, work is also on at a 2,500 barrel per day modular refinery, five megawatts power plant, 40-million-scf gas processing facility, and a data centre, among others at an Energy Park in Egbokor, Orhionmwon Local Government Area after necessary regulatory certifications from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority (NMDRA).
The Chief Executive Officer of DMCL, Dr. Akintoye Akindele, said that when the project comes on stream, the facility would leverage on infrastructure to deliver energy to the country, reduce dependence on importation of petroleum products, create jobs and ensure optimal utilisation of the nation’s assets.
He added: “This will be delivered in modules. After we get approval from the Department of Petroleum Resource (DPR) to go live, we will be starting with a 2,500 barrel per day refinery, 40-million-scf gas processing, 5 megawatts power, a data centre and almost 20,000 metric tonnes of storage.
“Our plan is that once we do this at the initial take-off, we will then add the other modules to it in a quarterly and biennial way. In that way, we will be able to utilize assets optimally, avoid wastage, look after the environment and create jobs.”
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