Rivers
Stakeholders Seek Review Of Ogoni Power Project …Give HYPREP’s Project Coordinator Confidence Vote
Key Ogoni stakeholders have stressed the need for the review of the ongoing Ogoni power project to make it cost effective and efficient as well as ensure that power supply to Ogoniland is stable and regular.
This is even as they also passed a vote of confidence on the Project Coordinator of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project(HYPREP), Prof Nenibarini Zabbey for the excellent manner he has been running the affairs of the Project.
The stakeholders, who made their position known during HYPREP’s Project Review Meeting at De Edge Hotel in Port Harcourt on Tuesday, said the Ogoni power project has already gulped a huge chunk of funds, adding that what HYPREP should be preoccupied with is generation of power for the area rather than transmission.
A former member of HYPREP’s Board of Trustees and Rivers State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Dr Peter Medee, who set the tone for the discussion on the power project in his intervention, said there is need for the power project to be reviewed in such a way that a gas plant would rather be installed in Ogoniland in order to achieve stable and regular power supply in the area.
To buttress his point, Medee cited the case of Aba in Abia State, which is today enjoying uninterrupted power supply.
According to him, it would not make any economic sense for huge funds to continue to be spent on connecting Ogoniland to the national electrity grid, then, at the end of the day, the people would enjoy less than five hours of power supply daily.
Medee further noted that Ogoniland boasts of huge deposits of gas, to warrant a successful review of the power project, transiting from the national grid to gas turbine, which he said would be able to provide stable power to the area.
While moving a motion for the stakeholders to pass a vote of confidence on the Project Coordinator, following his good works, the university teacher indicated that stability was necessary in the leadership of HYPREP, stressing that would enable the Project Coordinator to continue to do his work uninterrupted.
“We no longer want a change in the leadership of HYPREP,” he intoned.
His submission was greeted with a thunderous applause by the participants.
Toeing the line of reasoning of Medee, the Paramount Ruler of Barako Community, Mene Kadilo Kabari and former Rivers State Commissioner for Chieftaincy and Community Affairs, Hon John Bazia corroborated the fact that Ogoniland is rich in gas deposits, which would facilitate the supply of stable and regular power to the area.
Former Commissioner for Environment, Prof Roseline Konya and the President of Ogoni Mothers, Chief Priscilia Vikue, spoke glowingly about the Project Coordinator, and made a case for Ogoni women who they said have what it takes to be included in the execution of projects.
According to them, HYPREP should give attention and thought to what happens to Ogoni during the post remediation era.
On their part, former President of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP), Mr Lergborsi Pygbara, and Prof Ben Naneh highlighted the importance of sustainability in all that HYPREP is doing in Ogoniland.
Also speaking, former Vice Chairman of Gokana Local Government Council, Hon Maurice Pronen, who represented Senator Magnus Abe at the occasion, harped on the need for HYPREP to sustain its engagement and collaboration with stakeholders and communities in driving the Ogoni clean-up project.
Youth groups in Ogoniland at the event also lent their voices to the call for stability in the leadership of HYPREP, and equally passed a resounding vote of confidence on the Project Coordinator.
The Chairman of the Joint Representative Council of Ogoni Youths Groups(JRC), Mr Amabu Lidogo and the Publicity Secretary of MOSOP, Mr Imeabe Saviour Oscar commended HYPREP and the Project Coordinator for the good works going on in Ogoniland.
The highpoint of the event was the presentation of the status of project implementation by HYPREP in Ogoniland by Mr Ifiok Ndiyo, who represented the Head of the Evaluation and Monitoring Unit of HYPREP, Mr Akeem Ottan.
Ndiyo gave an overview of all the projects and programmes HYPREP has been carrying out in Ogoniland including their current status.
While stressing the need for all stakeholders and Ogoni people to support the Project, Ndiyo listed the challenges the agency has been encountering in the course of executing its mandates, and called for a change of attitude.
The Project Coordinator, Prof Deinibarini Zabbey, had earlier in his opening address said the aim of the meeting was to update the stakeholders on work progress as a way of comprehensively review the projects and activities, saying, “Your feedback is valuable to the overall success of HYPREP.”
He noted that he was grateful for the stakeholders’ continuous support and active participation in the Project, stressing that “Our progress thus far would not have been possible without your input and cooperation.Your interest and understanding are the bedrock upon which we build our efforts to heal and rejuvenate the Ogoni environment, livelihoods, and peace.”
Zabbey said over the past months, HYPREP has made notable strides in various facets of the project implementation process, saying, the land and shoreline remediation process is ongoing; preliminary assessment of the complex sites has commenced; while the pilot mangrove restoration of over 500 hectares is going well.
The Project Coordinator listed some of the communal-related challenges affecting the smooth progression of the Project’s work, and announced that HYPREP would in the next few weeks train traditional rulers and other key stakeholders on Alternative Dispute Resolution and peace building techniques to increase their capacity to deal with emergency issues at the community level in a way that aligns with the Project’s objectives.
Donatus Ebi