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Ogoni Clean-Up: HYPREP Engages Illegal Oil Refiners

Published

9 years ago

July 21, 2017

The Hydrocarbon Pollution and Remediation Project (HYPREP), says it has engaged illegal oil refiners in Ogoni communities of Khana, Gokana, Tai and Eleme local government areas of Rivers State in the clean-up process.
The Project Coordinator, HYPREP, Dr. Marvin Dekil, made the disclosure in Port Harcourt, while giving an account of the activities of the team over the last 100 days in office.
Dekil noted that artisanal refiners in the area have been engaged in the clean-up so that they will not continue to impact negatively on the area while the clean-up was going on.
The coordinator noted that when HYPREP met the illegal refiners, they (illegal refiners) promised to discontinue activities that are harmful to the environment.
He said that several of the youth, who illegally refined oil, have been engaged and retrained by the body to ensure that they were useful in the clean-up process.
“We met with the leadership of Ogoni ex-artisanal refiners. We had enlightened them about the project, and they promised not to be involved in such activities again having received our message that the trade is harmful to their heath, the society and the environment.
“We gave them the task of identifying the skills they would want us to train them on as an alternative source of livelihood for them,” Dekil added.
Speaking on the clean-up process, Dekil appealed to Ogonis in particular, and the entire people of Rivers State, to exercise more patience over the delay in the implementation of Ogoni clean-up exercise.
Dekil, who made the appeal at a press conference organised to mark his 100 days in office, in Port Harcourt, said it has become necessary to explain the process of the clean up to Ogonis.
He stated that, “the clean-up is done through proper assessment, characterization of the site, finding each of the pollutants, isolating them as well as identifying the best possible technology for removing them and these processes take time, skills and expertise”.
The coordinator added that there were processes and procedures involved in the Ogoni clean-up exercise that would require more time and patience from the affected communities to understand.
“Those baseline work, information gathering, and planning take time, and it is important that we reiterate again that you are not going to be seeing bulldozers in the field because that is not the way to do it.
“As for the report that we are not doing anything, that is wrong because we are doing so much, we are laying those scientific building blocks that will lead to an effective and professional clean-up exercise,” he added.
Dekil also hinted that in the past 100 days, his committee has embarked on educating and enlightening the people on the processes involved in the Ogoni clean-up project, adding that members of the affected communities have been engaged in the sensitisation exercise.
“We have met community leaders, youth, women, paramount rulers and their council of chiefs to explain to us their needs, and what was common is that ‘they need water’. Incidentally, that is one of the key recommendations of the report, ‘provision of potable water,” Dekil noted.
The Tide investigations show that HYPREP had visited Bodo, K-Dere, and Kpor communities, among others, as part of plans to commence the act of clean-up of oil impacted sites in Ogoni.
It would be recalled that the coordinator of HYPREP had earlier this month said that stakeholders had begun efforts to provide emergency water supply to address the concerns of Ogoni people, adding that in the next three months, project implementation would have been activated.

Susan Serekara-Nwikhana

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Rivers Capable Of Delivering Massive Votes For Tinubu, Chinda, Others -Fubara …Charges APC, Rainbow Coalition To Embrace Team Work

Published

2 days ago

November 13, 2026

The Tide

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has declared that the State is capable of delivering massive votes for President Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Rt. Hon. Kingsley Chinda and other candidates of the Rainbow Coalition in the 2027 general elections.

Fubara, who stated this yesterday at the inauguration of the APC Presidential Campaign Council in Port Harcourt, said the surest path to victory is for the members of the Presidential Campaign Council drawn from the APC and the Rainbow Coalition to embrace the spirit of teamwork.

He said what the state was witnessing in the current political season is a repeat of the successful mobilization done in 2022 and 2023, when a large campaign council worked in unity to deliver victory for him and for President Tinubu.

He added that the present council is bigger, wider and better coordinated and should therefore achieve even better results.

He noted that the beauty of the new council is the fact that some persons who were in the opposition camp during the previous elections are now part of the team, saying their inclusion has made the task easier, provided everyone works as one team and with sincerity of purpose.

The governor thanked the Coordinator of the Presidential Campaign Council for Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, and other leaders who worked tirelessly to bring the council to fruition, stressing that nothing is impossible especially when people work together for a common purpose.

He expressed optimism that with seriousness and commitment, the state would record a higher number of votes than it recorded in 2023.

Fubara, while congratulating members who made the list, appealed to those whose names were omitted not to be discouraged, as there are still sub-committees to be constituted and the list can still be updated, even as he warned against double loyalty.

He said the state has gone past the stage of division and is now looking to the future and what God holds for Rivers people, expressing confidence that with the strategy already put in place, the APC and the Rainbow Coalition would come out victorious in 2027.

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and Coordinator of the Campaign Council, Chief Nyesom Wike, while inaugurating the Council, lauded Fubara for finding time to attend the ceremony and other engagements of the Council in spite of his busy schedules.

Wike, who is also the National Leader of the PDP/ Rainbow Coalition, reminded members of the Council that they were chosen based on their capacity to participate in the activities of the group and deliver positive results.

He charged them to work hard to win votes for the candidates of the APC and the Rainbow Coalition for the Presidential, Governorship, National Assembly as well as State House of Assembly elections next year.

He disclosed that apart from the Presidential Campaign Council and its sub-committees, the Local Government Campaign Councils will soon be inaugurated to ensure better coverage of the grassroots during the current campaign season.

Featured

RSG Floats MNET Culture Content Promo

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Ministry of Culture and Tourism has floated a culture content platform in collaboration with digital television group, Multichoice.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Freddy Ndigbara, disclosed this after a meeting with MultiChoice Head of Content Acquisition, Don Dotun Ojon, in Port Harcourt.

He assured that content entrepreneurs and film makers would enjoy the platform by promoting culture and other contents to sell the states tourism potentials.

He said MultiChoice M-net was now open to increase its patronage for content shots on locations in Rivers State, describing the State as one that has numerous potentials for film tourism.

“We were privileged to have Don Ojon with us at the Rivers International Film Festival (RIFF) at the weekend in Bonny and he saw, first hand, the numerous sites and opportunities that are open to creatives in the State. After that, we felt it was important to deepen the conversation and he obliged. This is a cheering news for the sector in the State,” he said.

Ndigbara stated that “Rivers State has many more untold stories to tell, many more contents to reel out and the assurances from the M-net Acquisition Manager is an indication that the industry in the state will soon enjoy a new lease of life”.

The Permanent Secretary thanked Ojon for the visit and assured that creatives in the State would grap this opportunity and show the world that Rivers State is a major hub for film tourism in Nigeria.

On his part, Ojon said the visit was to discuss on ways of promoting tourism in the State using creatives and film.

Ojon said although the company has recently been acquired by canal+ France and is undergoing restructuring, he would promote the chances of Rivers State to host the MultiChoice talent factory in the State.

With Asaba, capital of Delta State, being saturated, Ojon said the next port is Rivers State, which he said is capable of building fresh crop of creatives, new locations, new story lines and concepts.

He, therefore, called for collaboration from stakeholders in the State.

Kevin Nengia

Featured

APC Presidential Campaign Storms PH, ‘Morrow

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

Barring last minute changes, the presidential campaign train of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will storm Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, tomorrow.

This is according to a campaign timetable released by the APC Campaign Council last month.

The Tide reports that the APC presidential campaign kicked off in Kaduna on October 24 with President Bola Tinubu in attendance.

The campaign train later moved to Cross River, Gombe, Nasarawa, and Ekiti on November 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively with the Vice President, Kashim Shettima representing the President at the rallies.

President Tinubu is personally scheduled to attend 12 states including Rivers, Kaduna, Plateau, Oyo, Borno, Enugu, Bauchi, Sokoto, Delta, Kano, Adamawa and Lagos.

The Rivers State rally, scheduled to hold at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, is expected to witness a large crowd of party supporters drawn from a coalition of political parties in the State.

The party is expected to round off its presidential campaign in Lagos State on January 9, 2027.

The Tide reports that Tinubu has not visited Rivers State as President since he assumed office in May 2023. His last physical visit to the State was before his inauguration on Wednesday, May 3 – Thursday, May 4, 2023, when he was hosted by then Governor Nyesom Wike in Port Harcourt to commission the Rumuola/Rumuokwuta Flyover and the Magistrates’ Court Complex.

Tomorrow’s visit will be his first to the State since assuming office.