The Executive Director of Africa Center for Corporate Responsibility, Dr Austin Onuoha, has called for the signing and implementation of Voluntary Principles (VPs) in Nigeria in order to address the problems of company/community unrest in the country.

Dr Onuoha said this during a two-day awareness workshop on “The Voluntary  Principles (VPs) on Security and Human Right”, organised by Women Initiative for Transparency and Social Justice, in partnership with Global Rights in Port Harcourt.

Onuoha who was the resource person during the two-day workshop said that if the Voluntary Principles which seek to address the rights of the host communities by the companies doing business, are adhered to, there will not be any need for conflict.

He also stated the need for companies to make the communities part of the security arrangements, stating that VPs implementation will also make companies to be accountable for the action in the communities without anybody being killed.

The Executive Director further noted that the workability of the VPs in Nigeria depends on the government and her ability to care for her citizens, adding that the level of irresponsibility practised by the multi-national companies in Nigeria is not done in other countries that have signed and implementing the VPs.

The Country Director of Global Rights, Abiodun Baiyewu charged the participants to utilise the knowledge got from the workshop, stating the need for the participants to work and get Nigeria to sign this VPs concept that would change the situation and approach of the companies towards their host communities.

“The number of participants I see here is big enough to change the community, society and the nation at large. All you need to do is to take a step”, she said.

Also speaking, the Co-ordinator of Women Initiative for Transparency and Social Justice, Dr Jeneffer Spiff called on the government to see the need to quickly sign in to this principle which she said will put smiles aon the faces of the citizens of this country.

She wondered why the country should keep delaying, adding the need for Civil Society Organisations to apply a bottom-top-approach on the VPs implementation by the country.

A participant, ThankGod Imoh from Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) commended the organisers for the training, adding that he will use the knowledge to work hard on the unwanted crisis concerning chieftaincy in Emuohua community where he came from.