Soot: Wike Is Rivers Saving Grace, Nwanosike Insists

The Chairman of Ikwerre Local Government Area in Rivers State, Engr. Samuel Nwanosike, has said that Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, was a saving grace for the people who had been traumatised by the devastating impact of soot caused by illegal oil refining in the state.
Nwanosike stated this, last Saturday, while fielding questions from Reuters reporters, Mr Tife Owolabi and Mr Adesola Afolabi, at Isiokpo over fight against illegal oil refining.
According to him, “The governor of Rivers State is a saving grace because if not for the action the governor of Rivers State took to save the lives of the people of Rivers State, I can tell you that nobody knows what our lives would be in the next few years from now”.
Nwanosike said that 152 illegal oil refineries have been identified in Ikwerre LGA, out of which 128 have been destroyed, assuring that he would not rest until all illegal oil refineries and crude oil dump sites in the LGA were completely destroyed.
The Ikwerre LGA boss noted that Ogbodo Community in Isiokpo and other communities in the state have been completely destroyed, including ecosystem and aquatic lives, due to oil bunkering activities, adding that all the periwinkles and fishes in the rivers have all been exterminated.
“As a people, we have decided that we would stay alive first before talking about governance.
“We are aware that oil and gas is in the Exclusive List. And so, we were patient as a government to see if the promise the Vice President of Nigeria made to the people of Niger Delta in giving them support and logistics to organise what is called modular refineries to come to fruition, but it’s like the present administration has failed in everything they promised Nigerians when they came to power. They failed to secure us.
“You can see the insecurity happening in Nigeria: Boko Haram has taken over the North-East; bandits have taken over the North-West and the North-Central; other non-state-actors like IPOB and all the rest have taken over the South-East. They have failed to improve our economic situation.
“And so, we have waited as a people and we have seen that they have also failed in bringing the modular refineries”, he said.
Nwanosike regretted the Federal Government’s carefreeness over illegal oil refining in the Niger Delta, saying that the farms the people survive from were all gone.
He emphasised that soot has caused many deaths and damaged properties, vowing that it was not time to keep quiet anymore.
“We have made up our minds as a government that no more illegal refinery in our environment. We are ready to do anything to stay alive as a people”, the Ikwerre council chairman said.
While saying that more illegal oil refineries are being discovered in Ikwerre LGA through intelligence report, he revealed that those caught perpetuating the acts have been prosecuted.
Nwanosike applauded Wike and security operatives for supporting the local government chairmen in the state to fight the illegal oil refinery menace.
He urged Nigerians to vote for a government that could liaise with international community and give them better refineries when the 2023 election comes.
The chairman of Ikwerre LGA called on the international community to come to the aid of the people of Rivers State, stressing that the people were dying and need support.
“Our environment is gone. They should mount pressure on the Federal Government not to keep a deaf ear on this. Mr President cannot claim he is not aware of what is happening”, he stated.
Nwanosike ridiculed the Minister of Transportation, Hon Chibuike Amaechi, for his muteness over the fight against oil bunkering activities in Ikwerre LGA.
He said, “The Minister of Transportation is from this community. He is an Ikwerre Local Government man. Chibuike Amaechi will not say he is not aware of what is happening. What kind of leader would he be when he comes back from Abuja one day and finds out that we are all dead? Who will he govern?
“We are asking them to rise to this challenge and forget about politicising it, and forget about trivialising it”, Nwanosike said.

By: Nelson Chukwudi