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From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
Residents of Bodo community in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State and Ogoni Liberation Initiative (OLI) have decried fresh oil spill which occured two days ago on Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC).
The community residents lamented that within a space of one month, they had witnessed incidents of spills in Sugi, Deebon and Kol-naana river in Bodo.
It would be recalled that a recent JIV report had revealed that Shell spilled five barrels of crude oil into Bodo community on August 2. 2022.
The report read: “The spill from the Bomu-Bonny section of the SPDC JV’s Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) in Bodo, Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State on 3 August, 2022, was largely water (98%) from the ongoing flushing of the TNP, with residual crude oil of about five barrels as established by the signed report of the Joint Investigation Visit led by regulators, and involving representatives of the Rivers State Ministry of Environment and the community.
“Owing to the high level of theft, the SPDC has not processed crude oil through the TNP since mid-June 2022. Ceanup of the impacted area and repair work on the pipeline are under way.”
Speaking at incident site in Deebon, Richard Giadom, lamented the devastating effect of the pollution on the community.
Giadom, who said the spill has taken over their farmlands, houses, disclosed that many people from the community had taken refuge in neighbouring communities in fear of sudden explosion.
He said: “You see living houses that are already drained with oil. We cannot cook inside the house so we have to go elsewhere and find refuge. So presently the farmers have been affected.”
Lamenting, Mrs Charity Ghana, a native of Bodo, said: “International community should come and rescue us. I cannot say anything, but God knows the best. We are dying now. Our children, everybody in the community are not safe.”
Mrs. Ghana cried: “This is the first one that happened on 2nd of August and this one occurred yesterday, just yesterday. This is the first one. In the month of August about four spillages occurred in this community. I can’t see clear because of the pollution, the effect is very harsh on us.”
Meanwhile, President of Ogoni Liberation Initiative (OLI), Douglas Fabeke, has expressed displeasure at the attitude of Shell and Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) for their alleged inability to issue statement on the spills in order to control its spread since the spill occurred and commencing a proper remediation of the impacted site and compensation of the people of Bodo in line with global best practices.
Fabeke expressed: “The ravaging and resurfacing spill in Bodo Community which has impacted the residential areas of the community with dwellers asked to evacuate to mitigate the associated risks, including probable fire outbreak, is a strong vindication of our continued agitation and demand for a comprehensive clean up of Ogoniland and the decommissioning of the decayed facilities of the SPDC.
“We state that if the spill of 2nd August, 2022, was immediately contained, the recurring spill of 24th August, 2022, would not have occurred.”
Fabeke therefore called on the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to immediately come to the aid of the Bodo people and contain this spill so as to prevent fire outbreak and destruction of lives and properties.
He also called on residents of Bodo community to desist from further scooping of the crude oil as it is highly inflammable and capable of causing massive explosion in the community.
