Described as one of the most polluted places in the world, Nigeria’s Niger Delta has become synonymous with environmental degradation caused by oil spills and gas flaring. This aspect of the aspirations of the Niger Deltans has been there for some time and took on more urgency and international dimension when the irrepressible Saro Wiwa of blessed memory rallied the people of the Niger Delta to resist the might of the federal government. His subsequent arrest and hanging are now part of a litany of tragedies that have befallen a people whose only crime has been the discovery of oil in their land. The numerous militias operating in this region now claim to be continuing with Saro Wiwa’s struggle for against environmental degradation and unequal share of the resources from oil.
Only an insane individual will challenge the right of the Niger Deltans to demand an end to environmental degradation and a clean up of the existing mess that has made their lives a living hell. Pollution created by oil spills and gas flaring have polluted rivers and made it difficult for the people of the region to rely on fishing as a primary source of livelihood. Farmlands and farming have suffered from pollution as much as water sources and fishing. A people have an inalienable right to protect itself from extinction, this right is recognized under national and international laws and conventions. This right is implicit in the Nigerian Constitution although there may be a difference of opinion in terms of its interpretation. Together, these sources represent the foundation of my support for the legitimate aspirations for the people of the Niger Delta.
The other intractable source of the conflict in the Niger Delta is the formula for sharing the revenue from oil exploration taking place in the region. This is popularly referred to as the derivation formula. It is an easy argument to make that in a normal environment, more money in government coffers will translate to more infrastructure and services for the benefit of the people. Put another way, more money from the federal to state governments and agencies in the Niger Delta will translate into better life. But neither the Niger Delta nor Nigeria are normal environments whichever way you look at it. Like Nigeria, the basic problem in the Niger Delta is corruption and the solution to the problems will be found in the reduction of corruption.
The state governments in the Niger Delta receive the highest amount of allocation on a per capital basis from the federal government than any other state in the country by virtue of being oil producing states and rightly so. They also have a right to ask for more. Between asking for me and maybe getting more, should the citizens of the region not be asking their governors to account for the existing allocations? All the governors of these states have to show for the billions they have received on behalf of the people are mansions in choice locations around the world, fleet of private planes, tens of cars that are not needed by any sane person and edifices built to satisfy their egos. Virtually all the governors that have governed or are governing these states are dollar billionaires, yet the militias are not challenging them. In fact, some of these militias stood by former governors Diepriye Alameisegha and James Ibori during their corruption trials. How does one make any sense of their positions when it is realized that both governors, notwithstanding the underlying political calculations involved in the case of Alameisegha, were on trial for stealing billions that could have gone into the construction of hospitals, schools, roads and improving the general welfare of the people?
Several agencies operate within the region charged with the goals of protecting the environment, provision of jobs and amenities to the people and making life easier for the people. Unfortunately, these agencies have become cesspools of corruption. They have become faster instruments for wealth accumulation than the legendary British train robbery. One of these agencies is OMPADEC. Appointments to OMPADEC are now more lucrative than state commissionerships and the lobbying for them are intense and brutal. Who are the people you find in these agencies? Many of them are mere political thugs or enforcers who have no idea what OMPADEC is about. Their understanding of their appointments to the agency is that they are there to make enough money for themselves and some extra to bribe the governors who appointed them and the party stalwarts in order to avoid loosing their positions. Is there anyone in Nigeria who does not know that this is how things work at the agency? Is there also anyone who does not understand that an agency that operates in the manner OMPADEC does cannot ameliorate the problems of the Niger Deltans? Is it therefore not surprising that the federal government of Nigeria is implying that it does not know why we are where we are today? Willful blindness cannot and should never constitute a valid defense.
Following the above analysis, how can increased revenue allocations to the Niger Delta solve the problems faced by Niger Deltans? Can it be that those who have mismanaged the current allocations to the region will all of a sudden have an epiphany, realize the evils of their pilfering ways and begin to properly manage the people’s resources simply because the allocation to the Niger Delta has increased? My respectful opinion is a capital NO. The only thing that will change is that the looting will increase and the only people who will get richer will be the governors, the agency heads and the militia leaders. This is not an endorsement of the federal government’s position on derivation but a challenge of the arguments advanced by the militia leaders and the politicians from the region.
The purpose of painting the above scenario is to attempt to create the framework for understanding the ongoing events in the Niger Delta and where they are going to lead us to. One cannot help but be annoyed by the ongoing wanton destruction of lives and property in the region by the Nigerian military. Equally annoying is the “basket mouth” propaganda of the so called militia leaders. I will not dwell on the issues of the Nigerian military or the federal government because there is a strong belief in some quarters that these institutions are beyond redemption in terms of their present constitution. Coming to the issue of the militia leaders, one is forced to conclude that they have contributed in no small measure in bringing this disaster upon the poor people of the Niger Delta and I am going to point to some examples below.
The militia leaders would want the world to believe that the Niger Delta conflict is one in which the government is on one side and they are on the other. But the picture one sees from a closer examination of the parties involved in the conflict is that leaders of the militias, states and the federal governments are on one side while the poor and dehumanized Niger Deltans are on the receiving end of their shenanigans. Close analysis shows that when you remove the federal government from the equation, almost every one of the militia leaders has substantial investments in the oil business and is reaping millions of naira from it monthly. In an interview sometime ago, Asare Dokubo said he did not need any bribe form the federal government because he had oil related investments that was fetching him about N30 million a month. Hmmmm. I understand Tom Polo is even making more money than Dokubo from his oil related investments.
Every Nigerian, including Niger Deltans, has a right to invest in and enjoy the benefits of investing in the oil industry. So, on the surface, there is nothing wrong with these individuals investing and reaping the profits from their investments. However, the question that comes to mind is why would the vindictive federal government of Nigeria allow the companies owned or controlled by these individuals to enjoy such success if they are not on the same page? We all know that once you cross the government in Nigeria, your business if finished. Those in doubt should review what happened to the late MKO Abiola’s businesses after he confronted Abacha. Of more recent memory will be the experience of former governor Orji Kalu’s Slok Air after he picked a fight with former president Obasanjo.
By allowing legitimate aspirations for a fair share of the revenue derived from the region’s oil resources and seeking environmental protection to degenerate into kidnappings for ransom and oil bunkering for their own personal benefits, the militia leaders lubricated themselves with the very activities that created the problems they claim to be fighting against. They have all become multi millionaires by stealing oil from the Niger Delta. They cannot claim ignorance of the fact that they are stealing from the very people they claim to be protecting. If their argument is that everyone is stealing oil in Nigeria, so the real “owners” might as well still some of it, they should make that argument loud and clear so they can be treated like any other enemy of the people of the Niger Deltan.
Do not be surprised to find out that some of these militia leaders have sent their children and maybe wives to safe havens outside Nigeria while they continue to use the innocent civilians, helpless men, women and children as human shields and bargaining chips. They send their children to the best schools in the world with the millions made from bunkered oil and proceeds of kidnapping while the people continue to wallow in highly degraded environments lacking basic schools, water, electricity and healthcare. Who is fooling who in the Niger Delta? The militia leaders have become infested with the very disease that ails their opponents.
Sadly and shamefully, I dare to predict (I hope I am wrong) that I do not foresee an end to the Niger Delta conflict in the near future for the following reasons:
1. the current government of President Yar Adua is lacking the political will to truly and honestly clamp down on corruption and ensure that the billions allocated to the Niger Deltans is spent for their sole benefit;
2. the government of Yar Adua is lacking the integrity and political foresight to understand that stopping the governors from stealing the existing allocations and ensuring they are spent to benefit the people is an easier and more popular battle to fight than killing thousands of unarmed civilians through the resort to aerial bombings in its quest to exterminate the militia’s from the creeks, a terrain that members of the Nigerian armed forces are unfamiliar with and doubtfully capable of fighting in;
3. the so called militia leaders are unlikely to adopt the pragmatic approach of going after the governors who are stealing the billions allocated to the region. They will do their struggle a great deal of good and garner wider national and international support for their cause if they can summon the courage to ensure that the existing allocations are properly spent before asking for more;
4. the militia leaders are not different from the people they are fighting and they have demonstrated this through kidnappings for ransom to oil bunkering. There is no evidence that the billions in ransom payments they have collected from the oil companies have been spent improving the lives of the Niger Deltans. They have tasted of the evil of cheap oil dollars and realized why their “oppressors” cannot let go.
This conflict maybe the moment for Niger Deltans who are genuinely interested in the welfare of the people to step up and be recognized. This is the time for the ordinary people of the Niger Delta to rise up against the charlatans who call themselves militia leaders, who preach accountability while profiting from the spoils of corruption, oil bunkering and outright looting. This maybe the best time to identify the real representatives of the Niger Deltans.
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