The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) and the Ogoni Liberation Initiative have criticized the federal government over recent remarks made by the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, concerning the resumption of oil production in Ogoni noting that the statement was insensitive and damaging to a healing process undertaken by MOSOP over the past five years.
The groups further noted that the Ogoni people were yet to recover from the pains of the past and do not need to be reminded of the evils done to them by previous Nigerian regimes neither do they need to be subjected to renewed state repression.
President of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke, who spoke on behalf of the two groups was responding to Ribadu’s comments during a question and answer session with Ogoni youths in Ebubu, Eleme local government area of Rivers State said Ribadu’s comments did not reflect the realities in Ogoni neither did it align with the position of the Ogoni people taken at the last Ogoni congress of November 30, 2024 and the Ogoni National Assembly of January 4, 2025.
A statement signed by Alex Akori, Secretary-General, MOSOP and made available to news platforms, recalled that the Congress of November 30, 2024 had mandated the MOSOP to engage the government in the negotiation of Ogoni interests in oil and gas resources of Ogoni and the Ogoni Day resolutions of January 4, 2024 rejected all forms of forceful resumption of oil production in Ogoni.
“I think the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, is getting the wrong advice on the true position of things in Ogoni. I will advise that the issue of resuming oil production in Ogoni, being very sensitive, needs to be handled with deeper consultations to address the underlying problems first, before we proceed”
“It is regrettable that the recent actions taken by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) is fast destroying the gains of earlier community sensitization done by MOSOP and our genuine efforts to persuade the Ogoni people to accept the idea.”
“And the fear now is that we are fast being driven back to 1993 by the new move because the drivers are desperate and failing to listen” Nsuke said.
On the NSA’s comments, Nsuke further said:
“To say the least, the NSA’s comments were unfortunate and had elements of provocation. He should have known about the sensitive nature of the issue of oil production in Ogoni and how seriously the Ogoni people take it, I think it would have been better to expand the scope of consultations, find ways to addresses the Ogoni demands and use persuasion to achieve the goal” Nsuke said.
“The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, unfortunately spoke so authoritatively, disregarding the pains and critical concerns of the Ogoni people, because he has access to deploy the powers of the state.”
“When I heard the NSA’s comments, I was wondering if he was speaking of the oil in Adamawa or if he was actually speaking of the oil in my Ogoni country. I think we need to be a bit more realistic and not provoke people into the streets.”
“Besides, the Ogoni issue has far more global dimension and I do not think we need to endanger the reputation of the government or Mr. President, when we have more practical, peaceful options which have been offered by MOSOP to resolve all the issues.”
“We should not at all times deploy or display the force of state and cause deeper damage that will become too difficult to resolve. Let us consider a proper dialogue especially, in the Ogoni case, where we have all shown willingness to talk” Nsuke noted.
He further urged the National Security Adviser to be a bit more humane, objective and put himself in the position of the Ogoni people who have suffered so much in state-backed repression.
“I think the NSA should be a bit more objective and humane. The Ogoni people have lost unquantifiable assets in human and material resources, By 1999, at least 30 Ogoni villages were destroyed and some 4,000 Ogonis had lost their lives in the struggle”
“What MOSOP and the OLI ARE asking for are basic rights and justice for the living and for the dead and it is only natural to resist every move made by government to resume oil production in the land without corresponding actions to address these injustices which ignited the crises and have prolonged it thus far”
The MOSOP president regretted that the National Security Adviser was quick to speak of resuming oil production while ignoring the root causes of the crises.
“The Ogoni issue is about justice and not just revenue generation for the Nigerian government. Ribadu forgot that the Ogoni environment is still polluted with people struggling to have access to clean water, he forgot that 4 Ogonis were killed on May 21, 1994, another 9 were executed by the state on November 10, 1995, some 30 villages were destroyed in state-backed repression and an estimated 4,000 people have lost their lives in the struggle for justice.”
“All these people, dead and alive, need justice” he concluded and the government should not run away from these realities if we are to address the problem permanently.
