Ogoniland Clean Up: Overhaul HYPREP Now – ERA Tells FG

The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), has called for the total overhauling of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) so as to be able to deliver significant clean up in Ogoniland.

   Executive Director of ERA/FoEN, Dr Godwin Uyi Ojo, gave the advice recently at a news conference in Benin City, Edo state.

   He said evidence has shown that the federal government environmental legacy project as regards the clean up of Ogoniland was failing and lagging behind because HYPREP lacks the capacity to conduct a proper clean up of the area.

   Dr Ojo disclosed  that for over 50 years, the people of Ogoniland in the Niger Delta area of the country have been struggling against air pollution, destruction of the environment and human rights violations.

   He said that since 2011 when the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) acknowledged the devastating impact of the oil industry in Ogoniland and reported that “No Clean Up,  No Justice “, no significant step has been taken in such direction.

   The ERA/FoEN leader revealed that investigation by his group has shown that 11 of the 16 companies contracted for the clean up programme are reported to have no registered expertise in oil pollution remediation or related areas.

  According to Dr Ojo, “UNEP recommended for the first five years an initial fund of $1 billion, to be paid by the oil companies that operate in Ogoniland, including the largest one, Shell. But nearly nine years after,  millions of US dollars spent and many broken promises, the people of Ogoniland still wait for a thorough clean up of their environment.

   “Since 2011, two different Nigerian Presidents have attempted to implement the UNEP report. Under then President Goodluck Jonathan, from 2010 till 2015, the first HYPREP  totally failed as no initiatives for clean up were started.

   “it then took President Buhari, who became president in 2015, 19 months to create the second HYPREP which started its operations in January 2017.

   “But progress has been slow and HYPREP’s operation is failing to deliver on simple things like creating awareness about polluted areas and placing warning signs to dissuade communities from continuing to farm, fish and drink from polluted areas.

   “As we speak, HYPREP is yet to make the requisition for the $200 million due for 2020. From $360 million received by HYPREP only $31 million has been spent partly due to Shell’s overbearing powers in HYPREP structures.

   “HYPREP has so far neglected to conduct its operations in a transparent and accountable manner. The public still does not have access to its work/implementation plans and there is a huge opaque wall as regards its budget and expenditures.

   “Therefore, for the clean up to succeed at a greater pace, we urge the federal government to urgently reorganize and completely overhaul HYPREP to ensure that it is able to deliver a truly significant cleanup in Ogoniland”.

   In order  for a positive change, ERA/FoEN recommended that, “The Nigerian government should urgently restructure, reorganize and completely overhaul HYPREP in its entirety and remove all administrative, financial and political obstacles that are stalling the progress of the cleanup process.

   “We urge the Nigerian government to finally ensure UNEP’s emergency measures are implemented.

   “Government should commit to transparency and investigate any allegation of conflict of interest and failure to clean up.

   “To strengthen HYPREP, the government should introduce a legislation to make the agency truly independent, transparent and accountable.

   “Oil companies like Shell should have no role in the oversight bodies, management and implementation of the process such as the Governing Board and the Board of Trustees, and should not second staff to HYPREP.

   “In order to address its devastating legacy of pollution in Nigeria, Shell should also pay for clean up of the rest of the Niger Delta and compensate communities affected by its activities.

   “We call for a global binding treaty to hold corporations accountable for their human rights violations and environmental harm which the polluted Ogoniland amply demonstrates,“ Dr. Uyi Ojo, posited.

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