Opinion: The burden of #Oilspill; The Niger Delta and the Rest of us….. By Wale Bakare

The challenges of managing oil spills globally has been a huge onus on government and the multinational companies to muddle through in recent times . Oil spillage occurs in nearly every oil producing countries, but responsible government all over, in anticipation of these spills comes up with stringent laws to protect its citizenry first in accordance with the government laid down regulations by abating spill occurrences and activities that undermines lives and sustainability. But in Nigeria, the reverse is more or less the case, but for a few good men advancing the course of the common man in the face of adversity. Nigeria’s economy is oil dependent with over 75% of its revenue accruing from the downstream sector. Being Africa’s largest oil producer and the fifth largest oil supplier to the United State, Nigeria exports about 2.5 million barrels of oil a day, almost entirely from the Niger Delta. Unfortunately this glowing figure does not translate into economic fruition for better living conditions of all Nigerians, worse still is the calamitous effect it has, and is having on the oil rich Niger Delta inhabitants whose only sin is the discovery of this goldmine on their territory. If you have ever lived in the Niger-Delta you would feel the devastating effect of oil spills in its ugliest form. Several of such spills have occurred in no small magnitude. The burden of this exploration and exploitation is too grievous to stomach by this community alone. Let alone think that a few minorities would continue to make life more miserable for the teeming majority. A visit to the riverine community of Odioma in Brassa Local Government area in Bayelsa State, you will be greeted by children clustered up in their numbers ravaged by different magnitude of deformity due to lack of fertile ground to grow food. Their parents, mainly artisan and predominantly fishermen are left in doubt as to the next call for survival since their marine has been dealt with unjustly. This is the tale of a community within the republic still griming on the devastating effect of the spillage that occurred on Christmas eve in the year 2010. The Bonga oil spills no doubt remains the worst in 10years, this single disaster wrecked overwhelming havoc on their aquatic lives and farmlands; thus raising serious concern, regarding their means of livelihood. The growing cases of oil spill in the Niger-Delta region have become a recurring phenomena. Statistically, a ton of crude oil is roughly equivalent to 803 gallons or 7.33 barrels approximately; It is estimated that about 200,000 barrels of oil are spilled or lost to oil theft and vandals daily onshore/offshore and this does not include the amount absorbed by the crust which eventually forms layers of tarcete harmful to the community. In this part of the country oil spillage is seen as part of the oil business. For decades, oil producing communities in the South-South have been battling with multinational oil companies and the Federal Government on the need to pre-empt and contain oil spills that had culminated in gross environmental pollution, destruction of sea lives and waning quality of Agricultural land . While I agree that there are no proven technology that allows for a complete containment of the oil spills, even the compensation plan cannot make up adequately for the loss of the fertile land. So why do these multinationals remain tone deaf to the agitations of this community let alone clean up the mess before it. The government regulating agencies have failed Nigerians by their inability to enact stringent laws that will review their activities in the Niger region. The NOSDRA, NIMASA, DPR and the Ministry of Environment has not done much in terms of cooperating together to comeup with a workable blueprint. As it stands now, the oil multinationals remain the KING. I recalled vividly in the aftermath of the Bonga disaster last year when the Senate Committee Chairman on Environment and Ecology Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki called on the Chairman of SPDC to express his displeasure at the waves of spills and the need to make substantial compensation for the affected community in the Niger Delta region, The SPDC man unashamedly rebuffed and declared with a tactical tweak “We have not broken any law”. That wasn’t funny, not even in the affirmative, just In an attempt to remain emotionally sane, you are allowed to laugh, I just did. This is the bane of our problem, a few care too much and the majority care less. Yet millions of people are rendered jobless, their drinking water polluted, their habitat under great environmental vulnerability . What becomes the effect of these spills on the rest of us living in the non oil producing region? Do we keep silence just because we “think” its not our prerogative? Where are the NigerDelta activist supposedly championing the course of the region? What do the south-south leaders really agitate for? I may not be able to provide answers to most of these questions, but certainly if we are to curb this menace starring us in the face, we must be willing to make a few sacrifices. I must commend the efforts of Senator Bukola Saraki for bringing to the forefront the stark reality of the living conditions and the harsh inhumane treatment meted out daily to the people of the Niger Delta as a result of pollution caused by the devastating effect of the spill. Some of the pictures posted via his twitter handle (@bukolasaraki) were revealing to say the least; Children were captioned taking their bath with drenched oil contaminated water, the women were spotted preparing their meals with this same infected water. Life expectancy in the region is in its all time low and children are plagued with life threatening diseases. The only (un) justifiable” explanation by this coy is to lay the bulk of the blame on pipe vandals - the locals. The government agencies need to realise that oil spills respect no boundaries and as such uniform federal policies and programs are essential. In addition, since the resources necessary to respond to oil spills are limited and vary among the response agencies, it is more important than ever to establish and strengthen cooperative relationships. Interestingly, the amended NOSDRA bill promises to correct a lot of anomalies if given the right attention and passed into law. Many pundits are favourably disposed to the new bill as a good step in the right direction. The bill if given the necessary support will bring a lasting solution to the current oil spillages experienced in many parts of Nigeria today. However, to completely ensure a safer environment, individually and collectively we must demand quality leadership from our representatives to raise awareness of the possible danger of polluting the environment and its economic loss. Since it is arguably cheaper for oil companies to pollute the environment and neglect the community; to win this battle, remediation exercise needs to be carried out in the affected areas while deploying the right technology and modern equipments to prevent further spillages, this will go a long way in treating our environment in the category of our national security.

I am @waleflame.