The Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Ogoni, Rt Rev. Soloman Gbaregbara has flayed the Federal Government over the delay in the implementation of the United Nations Environment Project (UNEP) report on the clean-up of the ogoni environment.
Speaking with The Tide, in an interview in Port Harcourt, recently shortly after attending an event on Ogoni Peace Project, the renowned cleric, accused the Federal Government of playing politics with the Ogoni clean up exercise. He regretted that years after the flag off of the exercise in Ogoni, the project remains suspended as there was nothing on ground to show any sign of seriousness on the part of Federal Government. “It is regrettable that the Federal Government is politicising the Ogoni clean up exercise. the Ogonis have over the years suffered the brunt of oil politics.
The UNEP report is critical to Ogoni development, I see no reason why the entire project will remain in a comatose and become the basis of sloganisation by Federal Government.
Bishop Gberegbara also accused president Buhari of diverting attention from addressing the age long environmental challenges in Ogoni and the Niger Delta and noted that the president was concerned with how to use the fund from the Niger Delta to develop the North East. He called on all stakeholders involved in the Ogoni clean up exercise to expedite action and ensure that the UNEP reporte was implemented without further delay. Commenting on the state of the nation, the Bishop cadled for structuring of the country and stated that the future of Nigeria as a federation, depended on its response to the imperatives of justice.
Source: TheTideNewspaper
