NIGER DELTA YOUTHS TEMPORARILY SUSPEND MASS ACTION AGAINST NNPC BOSS, BAYO OJULARI
The Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders and Forum, a coalition of youth groups in Nigeria’s oil-rich region has temporarily suspended its campaign for the resignation of Bayo Ojulari, Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), over untold injustice meted on the Niger Delta region, whose oil and gas resources keep the Nigerian economy afloat.
This was disclosed during a press briefing by the group recently in Abuja, where its spokesperson, Dr. Legborsi Yamaabana, hinted that the mass action already being carried out to address injustice against the Niger Delta in the NNPCL had been put on hold temporarily, following the intervention of some respected state officials from the region, notably Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum, Honourable Stella Okotete, as well as security agencies.
According to Dr. Yamaabana, “While our demands remain valid and unresolved, we have temporarily suspended further mass action to allow genuine dialogue with a view to a peaceful resolution. Since stability and prosperity of our region were our propelling motive, we are open to further engagements with the management of the NNPCL led by Mr. Bayo Ojulari and other relevant authorities.”
Earlier, the coalition of Niger Delta Ethnic Youth Leaders Forum had mobilised youths in their hundreds to barricade the head office of the NNPCL in Abuja, blocking its entry and exit gates and preventing officials, including the GCEO, from gaining access to their offices.
The group said it was dismayed at the unjustifiable shutting down of the Port Harcourt refinery, despite billions of dollars sunk into its turnaround maintenance project and the arbitrary redeployment of Niger Delta indigenes from strategic positions within the NNPCL hierarchy.
The agitated youths had also frowned at the alleged inadequate employment opportunities for Niger Deltans in the NNPCL, a situation it condemned as gross injustice against the “goose that lays the golden egg.”
Following the intervention of leaders in the Niger Delta, the group said it had decided to sheathe its sword, awaiting a positive response that would engender restorative justice for Nigeria’s oil-rich region that bears the negative externalities of crude oil and gas production.
In view of the recent development, the group says while it acknowledges the altruistic intention of a third-party intervention, it remains committed to the cause of long-suffering communities in the Niger Delta, which deserve a better deal from the NNPCL.
“Our actions were not driven by hatred or selfish interests but a genuine resolve to right the wrongs meted on our people by the NNPCL. As leaders of ethnic nationalities of the Niger Delta region saddled with the sacred responsibility of advocating, defending and advancing the cause of our people, we were left with no choice but to act decisively,” the group noted.