Ibeno Communities, PPDF Hit Streets with Campaign Against Environmental Pollution
By Imo Etim
Oil and gas Communities in Ibeno local government area of Akwa Ibom State together with Peace Point Development Foundation have taken campaigns against environmental pollution to the streets of Ibeno.
Peace Point Development Foundation is a nongovernmental organisation working to address needs of vulnerable communities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.
The campaign which took place on Friday, November 4, 2022 in form of a rally witnessed members of Okoroutip, Iwokpom and Opolom community, secondary school students in Ibeno together with Peace Point Development Foundation march across the streets in Ibeno with placards, posters and banners calling on oil and gas companies in the area to stop environmental pollution.
Messages passed on the placards had inscriptions such as ” Pollution is a silent Killer “, “Stop Burning our Future”, “Don’t be greedy. Be greeny”, ” No Restoration, No Divestment”, “Climate Change is inevitable unless we act now”, Poisoning Water is Genocide”, ” we can make our planet great again”, ” Save our environment “, and ” stand up for climate justice “,
Speaking at the rally, the Coordinator of Peace Point Development Foundation, Mr. Umo Isua-ikoh said Ibeno communities have suffered decades of environmental pollution hence need to urgently stop to save lives and environment.
The PPDF Coordinator pointed out that the rally was designed to send a message to the oil and gas companies operating in the area to handle their operations in a way that shows value for the environment and also raise the consciousness of the locals towards protecting and monitoring their environment.
He added ” Since the 1960s, ExxonMobil has operated here, flaring gas day and night. Because of these flares together with several oil spills, the people have suffered several illnesses and the waters are no longer giving fish.
” This sabotage is against nature and the environment. It must be stopped. The effect of environmental pollution is manifesting in a larger scale recently through flooding that has recently affected most states of the federation. We must wake up and save our environment now”.
Isua-ikoh also charged the community not to engage in illegal refining and indiscriminate waste disposal stressing that such practices are not healthy to the environment.
He called on the people to pass the message across to all and most importantly walk the talk.
