Ogoni Clean Up: HYPREP misused N136b – Group
By Kingsley Chukwuka
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) set up by the federal government to implement the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), report on the clean-up of Ogoniland in Rivers State has been accused for allegedly misappropriate over N136 billion (N136,805,148,000).
The group under the aegis of Ogoni Liberation Initiative, faults HYPREP for fulfilling its mandate by restoring Ogoniland, a primary purpose in which it was set up.
Speaking in a statement sent to our correspondent in Jos on Saturday, the President of the Group, Dr. Fabeke Douglas said the entire struggle of Late Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others including 3, 000 helpless Ogoni people killed in an unfortunate war targeted at the minority and powerless people of Ogoni, has been swept under the carpet by some unreasonable and bad elite of Ogoni people.
Febeke said HYPREP was also meant to provide employment opportunities for the Ogoni people, adding that as he speaks no single Ogoni youth is employed by HYPREP.
“It has also been observed with disappointment that none of the recommendations by the UNEP report has been implemented by HYPREP: important projects that would have turned the Economy and livelihood of the people have not been built nor implemented”, he said.
While still expressing his dismay, Febeke said the integrated soil management centre in Ogoniland that was meant to contain technical units such as incinerator, soil washing unit, contaminated water treatment unit, containment cells, decontamination of groundwater, and rehabilitation of the mangroves, have not been implemented.
“UNEP recommendation on several areas that need urgent attention such as public health, provision of drinking water for communities is far from being implemented.
“Community aquifers have been contaminated with a huge amount of Hydrocarbon substance.
Clean-up of contaminated soil and sediments, recommendation on follow-up monitoring, bunkering and artisanal refinery, preventive surveillance, monitoring of ground water/water bodies, fish and aquatic sediments, monitoring of vegetation and fauna, as well as decommissioning of oil field facilities, oil spill response, maintenance of oil fields facilities among other operational recommendations in Ogoniland, have not been successful achieved”.
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The Ogoni Liberation Initiative is however demanding a public apology to the Ogoni people whom the Agency was established for and also calling on the federal government to relief HYPREP of her abusive and undeliverable services and reversed the contract to a more experienced and professional environmental company for better clean-up of Ogoniland.
Our correspondent reports that UNEP had submitted a report of its findings on the Ogoni environment on August 4, 2011, which is now popularly referred to as the UNEP Report to the Federal Government of Nigeria
