Drama Looms As Dakuku Peterside Kicks Against Resumption Of Oil Exploration In Ogoni Land

Dakuku Peterside, a former governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Rivers State, is against the resumption of oil exploration in Ogoniland.

The former Director General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, said it would be premature to do that at this point.

Recall that the exploration of oil in Ogoni, Rivers State, has been put on hold for many years due to serious environmental concerns.

And now, the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu seems to be making preparations to return to Ogoni land for oil exploration.

Peterside, the candidate of the APC for the 2015 governorship election, told Channels Television on Wednesday that until certain contentious issues were addressed, it would be premature to make such move.

“If I must be sincere with you, it will be premature to resume oil exploration in Ogoni land. What I think and I think that is the part the government has also chosen is to do further consultations, build trust and show genuine commitment to real environmental governance,” Peterside said.

“The challenge all along has been the opaque nature of oil exploration not just in Ogoni land but in the entire Niger Delta.

“And the fact that the way benefits derivable from oil exploration is distributed to the exclusion of the people of Niger Delta is a big question mark. And until we address that in a transparent manner, then we will not make much progress,” he added.

Peterside further said that the Federal Government’s move to establish a university in Ogoni was not enough to address the injustice.

President Tinubu had on Monday signed a bill establishing the Federal University of Environment and Technology (FUET) in Ogoni and pledged more support for the community.

He said that to address the injustice the Ogonis have suffered, the Ogoni Bill of Rights must be revisited.