•A Niger Delta oil community
Lawyers and the Social Development Integrated Centre (Social Action) have called for stronger policy frameworks and systemic structures to advance environmental justice in the Niger Delta and across Nigeria.
They made the call at a stakeholder engagement dialogue convened by Social Action to examine environmental justice and the role of young lawyers in driving reforms and accountability, reports The Guardian.
Leading the discussion, Prof. Samuel Dike of the Department of Energy and Environmental Law, Rivers State University, said environmental justice requires meaningful participation of residents in decisions affecting the environment in which they live.
He regretted that despite so many laws made in the country, the political will to implement them had been lacking.
“Law is important; law is primary. You may dislike law, yet law is a veritable instrument in promoting environmental justice, in promoting remedial justice, in promoting a saner and pollution-free society.
“When you read Section 20 along with Chapter Four of the 1999 Constitution – because every environmental harm now affects human rights, you can proceed against anybody or institution to ventilate your claim to ensure environmental justice,” he said.
He stressed that communities should not be excluded from decisions on environmental policies, projects and activities that directly affect their livelihoods, health and wellbeing.
Meanwhile, the President of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), Fegalo Nsuke, has stated that there are currently no threats to ongoing negotiations between the Federal Government and the Ogoni people.
Nsuke made this assertion in a statement made available to The Guardian in Abuja, stressing that the Ogoni people are experiencing a common situation that characterises societies that lack opportunities and leaves everyone scrambling for what is available.
MOSOP President explained that angry comments from some interest groups do not threaten the process, as the members of MOSOP, the Ogoni masses and drivers of the Ogoni resistance are fully mobilised to support the process and are following events very keenly.
He described opposition from interest groups as normal, saying that in a long and successful struggle like that of the Ogoni people, these internal bickerings are not unexpected at a time when the focus is on discussing benefits.
Nsuke said in the struggle to win benefits, propaganda and sponsored protests will not be abnormal or unexpected, noting that such vertuperations will not disrupt the ongoing dialogue process and will not deter the people’s determination to successfully conclude the dialogue process.
Also, the Niger Delta risks losing more than its mangrove forests to unchecked land reclamation, pollution and development, as the destruction of the ecosystem could expose coastal communities to erosion, undermine livelihoods and threaten traditional ways of life, Emeritus Professor, Winston Bell-Gam, has warned.
Bell-Gam, a renowned environmental planner and petroleum geologist, gave the warning in Port Harcourt during a sector spotlight organised by the Alumni UK Rivers State Chapter in collaboration with Arts in the Garden City and the Niger Delta Climate and Tech Series.
The programme, titled “Mangroves, Memory and the Future: Climate, Culture & Innovation in the Niger Delta,” brought together academics, environmentalists, climate advocates and other stakeholders to examine the relationship between the Niger Delta’s mangrove ecosystem, communities and future development.
Bell-Gam said limited land in coastal and estuarine areas had increased pressure on mangroves, as physical development often led to reclamation and canalisation.
“Any form of development, physical development, would lead to serious incursions into the mangrove,” he said, urging planners to consider the consequences of such interventions before projects are undertaken.
