Purported Clean-up And Plans To Resume Oil Exploration Causing Pandemonium In Ogoni Land.

There is serious tension and confusion in Ogoni Land following federal government's decision to wait until 18 months time before the implementation of the clean-up exercise will take off after the over publicized flag-off, and the surprising attempt by Nigerian Petroleum Development Company(NPDC) to commence oil exploration in Ogoni barely 3 weeks after the flag-off that many have termed a jamboree.

Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) through its president, Legborsi Pyagbara on June 24 2016 condemned the move by the federal government and some APC leaders in Ogoni, and vowed that Ogoni people will resist it. Also on that same day, Dr. Young Nkpah, the president of National Youth Council of the Ogoni People(NYCOP) led members of the body to stage a peaceful protest at Novotel Hotel in Port Harcourt where NDPC was meeting with members of APC from Ogoni to map out strategy for the commencement of oil exploration in Ogoni. Even Celestine Akpobari a front line human rights activist in Ogoni who later joined APC and contested election on the platform of the party, condemned the action of federal government, he described the action of the federal government as divide and rule tactics, he did not mind that people are accusing his party(APC) and friends like Magnus Abe and Rotimi Amaechi of being behind the sinister move.

Ogoni people are now skeptical about the clean-up because there is no concrete plan on ground for the exercise, they are now raising questions like:-

* Why was the flag-off for the purported clean-up over publicized when they knew that the take-off date is in 18 months time?
* Why is the fund for the clean-up not captured in the 2016 budget?
* Where is the blueprint for the implementation of UNEP report?

Some people are even alleging that Magnus Abe arranged with the minister for environment, Amina J. Mohammed through the help of Amaechi to hurriedly put up the flag-off to boost his chances at the rescheduled rerun election in the Rivers South-East senatorial district, and that was why they over publicized it to make gullible minds believe he made it possible.

Investigations further revealed that, immediately after the President of Ogoni Council of Traditional Rulers, King GNK Giniwa held a meeting with Sultan of Sokoto, Sa'adu Abubakar in Abuja, NPDC swung into action to commence oil exploration in Ogoni. It will be recall that, King Giniwa has been a strong supporter of Muhammadu Buhari, Rotimi Amaechi, and APC by extension.

There are strong indications that the federal government may have told Ogoni people to allow NPDC to commence operations in the place so that the government can raise money for the clean-up because, the country is broke and that is the only way they can clean up their land for them.