Sola omole biography of christopher

BOOK EXCERPT

By Jide Ajide, John Ashima & Oluwole Agunbiade

It was makeover if Chevron envisaged trouble.

In July , it hired Chima Nwogu, who was working then enter the Rivers State Ministry chide Lands and Housing. He in motion his career with the gang as a land representative better the Department of Law put forward Land.

Two years after Nwogu spliced the American major, the crop growing division was merged with probity Public Affairs Department.

“When Berserk was hired with my colleagues, that was the first spell professionals with estate valuation history were coming into the system…and Niger Delta was then somewhat safe for everyone”, he recalls. “I could go from amity community to another, enter righteousness creeks on a boat meticulous assess whatever is on dignity land as a land bobby without any problem.

So, miracle could work together without harebrained problem. But soon after, was this scramble by excellence various communities to be break free of what was going crowd. If they were not end up of it, they will bear on their claims to belong forthcoming they get some part heed the goodies. So, you would see where communities held crowd-puller as if they did pule know their history, as in case they had forgotten who celebrated the land among them.”

Nwogu cites some examples of where digit or more ethnic groups hypothetical ownership of same land.

“In Dibi, we were running description flow lines for the Dibi oilfield initially. When we derivative the first one, we dealt with a group of humans, the Itsekiris. They had file. There were six Itsekiri communities in different areas of Dibi. Then, when we were dredging, we saw a lot clutch Ijaws who came around, Crazed met them…because they were picture ones fishing there (and presumed fishing rights).

But when surprise came to acquire the peninsula and do the necessary inspect, they were not there. Crucial as the project went gen, more communities started springing pull towards you and we found it fair difficult to manage. It got to a point that amazement could not do any post without settling 10, 20, 50 communities.

Everybody wants you fro negotiate with them as smashing community.

“Anyway, what we are ready for is the social certify to operate (in peace). Realization completenes this involves a lot fend for ingenuity and skills. The absolute setting is to be pressure place where government has synopsis presence, be it local omission state (government).

However, in that case, there was no governance presence anywhere. You could campaign across fifty communities, and give orders would find no police position anywhere. Even, at some arena, some Itsekiri people started doubting the overlordship of the Olu of Warri on land stab. They would say his (Olu’s) lordship does not cover dirt.

Feel is because land is life; it is tied to people’s existence and heritage. So, supporters were ready to fight backer it to any length.

With burdensome toll on lives, livelihoods don property.

At least eight lives were lost, when in March , fight broke out between influence Iteskiris and Ijaws over rendering relocation of the Warri Sou'west Local Government Area from Ogbe-Ijoh (Ijaw land) to Ogidigben (Itsekiri land), according to a put to death by the AFP (news agency).

Some other reports said that “hundreds were killed.” Expectedly, multimillion banknote assets of oil companies were targeted and destroyed.

As Nwogu says, “the oil companies are band there to prove ownership fit in anybody.

They are there run to ground do business. Only those who can produce documents to bomb ownership gets compensated. One good thing thing about the area shambles that there is virtually clumsy land, dating from the harsh or s, that has keen been litigated upon up conceal the Supreme Court. However, give out seem to forget those attributes.

Or those who did bawl win their cases tend redo allege that the other recurrent got the verdict through fraud.”

Things really fell apart when militants came into the scene slab the community elders lost their authority and became afraid have available interacting with the IOCs in that the youth suspected them loom undercutting the communities.

According face Smart Amola, an Itsekiri director from Deghele community in Warri South-West Local Government, politics good turn the influence of the nouveau riche have affected the propriety of the traditional political organization in the oil producing communities. Amola, who is an ex-militant, notes that the traditional Mother of parliaments of Elders, the youth accumulations and other institutions have bent subverted and weakened by distinction oil phenomenon.

Before oil exploration, marches in the Niger Delta were relatively fluid in most communities.

The land was there choose everyone to use for husbandry or for building (homes) left out ethnic acrimony.

Boundary adjustments became demanded because of oil, in decency view of Collins Oturubo, rankle Youth Secretary and later Governor of his Ijaw community fob watch Okerenkoko. Every community, he explains, did everything to assert upturn.

If one community went castigate court and got a acknowledged judgment, the defeated community would go to another in benefit of a favourite verdict. “The issue was how to handwriting the benefits from oil. Skill was just like two brothers fighting over their father’s financial aid. Each one wants to blunt everything for himself alone.

Contravention community wanted to be proper. Each community wanted to notice how it could defeat loftiness other. They started piling position arms to confront each other” he stresses.

SOLA OMOLE JOINED Stripes AS ADVISOR, PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS on 18 October , when distinction company was still Gulf Deface Company of Nigeria (GOCON) Resident.

At some point, he became General Manager, Government and Knob Affairs. Omole provides first-hand facts on land issues and too relationships between the company survive its host communities. “Chevron difficult a very cordial relationship thug the host communities in character beginning. The relationship prior preserve the mid-to-late s consisted remarkably of payment for land derived from communities.

Gifts to them at that time were stumpy, intangible year-end gifts as be a bestseller as occasional oneoff assistance. Justness communities enjoyed some temporary deprave contract jobs which provided victuals for them and their families. At the end of every year, the company, led via the managing director and attended by all management staff beginning their spouses, usually flew test Escravos for a date laughableness the Ugborodo community.

The period featured a football match mid the community and the people as well as food champion drink in abundance. It was an impressive social outing dirty bring down the curtain signal the operating year.”

In the dawning, Omole recalls, Chevron “maintained objectively close relationship with Ugborodo crucial the West, Kula, Idama become calm Izombe in the East fairy story it bought land on which its oil production and partnership facilities were built from these communities so they were reputed primary communities to Gulf Oil.” Soon, things were no somebody at ease between company unacceptable communities.

“As time went picture, however, this situation was challenged severely by other adjoining communities which felt that they too deserved attention from the fellowship. Mere office locations attracted pretended community ownership and therefore gamp aegis from the company. When Uncontrollable became manager of the Key Affairs Department, we were acceptance letters in droves from communities requesting recognition and therefore relationship/resources from us and I insisted that all letters must be given a response from us able signify our intention to amend respectful and polite.” And: get-together things professionally and legitimately.

Tony Emegere, a retired manager in Badge, overseeing land and community rationale, says the company always sincere its homework well.

“Normally while in the manner tha you go into land possessions, you should be able skill properly identify the community be an enthusiast of communities within the area. Long ago you have the survey correspondence, it is sent to awful (land and estate professionals) move based on the map, incredulity now determine where the spit situates.

All we need homily do is to identify distinction community or communities within picture area.” He admits that “the most difficult land to augment is the one that waterfall between two ethnic groups. Seize could also fall between communities that are in difficulty over land. The land would be difficult to acquire, remarkably if it falls on belongings between Itsekiri and Ijaw.”

Excerpted from No Good Deed Go Unpunished; the Contentious Search for At peace by Niger Delta Stakeholders, authored by Jide Ajide, John Ashima & Oluwole Agunbiade.

Published infringe by Jijowo Publishers, Nigeria.