The Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) has urged the indigenes to guard against illegal bunkering in the area.
The group warned that bunkering would lead to further pollution of Ogoni-land and render the clean-up exercise futile.
The President of MOSOP, Legborsi Pyagbara stated this at the 2017 celebration of Ogoni Day with the theme, “Peace and Unity for Sustainable Development in Ogoni-land.”
Pyagbara, while thanking the Ogoni people for their endurance towards the clean-up, stated that with continuous bunkering activities, the clean-up would yield no result.
Also, Senator Magnus Ngei Abe, representing Rivers South East Senatorial District urged the people to come together to find a lasting solution to the recurring communal crisis in the area.
Abe, while delivering in a goodwill message to Ogoni people on the celebration enjoined them to ensure that peace prevailed in the area to ensure the success of the $1 billion clean-up project.
The state governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last general elections, Dr. Dakuku Peterside commended the resilience of the people and their non-violent position.
Peterside told newsmen in Port Harcourt yesterday that the Ogoni struggle was for all.
“I am calling on Ogonis to unite and work with other ethnic groups to accelerate the aspirations and the accomplishment of the dream of the founding fathers of the struggle.
“We must enter a new phase of cross ethnic groups engagement, recognising that it is a collective struggle of all oppressed people all over the world.
“I salute the resilience of the Ogonis over the years and their industry, I am prepared to back every genuine effort to make the people of Ogoni great,” he said.
Peterside, who is the Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), commended the Federal Government on the Ogoni clean-up but asked for an accelerated process.
He urged the government to empower the people whose farmland and streams have been destroyed due to prospecting and production of hydrocarbons over years.
He commended the leadership of MOSOP for keeping the spirit of the struggle alive.
Source: Guardian Nigeria
