President Bola Tinubu has directed the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, to arrange talks with various parties within Ogoniland in the oil-rich Niger Delta area to resume oil production in the area.
The President, who gave the mandate in Abuja when he received Ogoni leaders including Lead Representative Siminalayi Fubara at the Aso Villa, said his administration would prioritise peace, justice, and sustainable development in the area. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, was also at the meeting.
Tinubu called for solidarity and reconciliation, encouraging the Ogoni people to set aside historical complaints and work together to accomplish peace, development, and a clean climate.
“We cannot in any way rewrite history, but we can correct some anomalies of the past going forward. We cannot heal the wounds if we continue to be angry,” Tinubu said, according to a statement by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga.
“We must work together with mutual trust. Go back home, do more consultations, and embrace others. We must make this trip worthwhile by bringing peace, development, and a clean environment back to Ogoniland,” the President said.
He asked ministers, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, and the Rivers State Government to help out with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) to accomplish this mandate.
“It is a great honour for me to have this meeting, which is an opportunity to dialogue with the people of Ogoniland.
“It has been many years since your children, and I partnered to resist military dictatorship in this country. No one dreamt I would be in this chair as President, but we thank God.
“Many of your sons present here were my friends and co-travellers in the streets of Nigeria, Europe, and America.
“I know what to do in memory of our beloved ones so that their sacrifices will not be in vain,” the President said.
On his part, Governor Fubara thanked the President for his support of the Ogoni people and for welcoming an all-inclusive representation of the people to the Presidential Villa.
Underlining the significance of resuming oil operations in Ogoniland, the Lead Representative pledged the delegation’s obligation to sticking to the President’s instructions and providing the essential support to accomplish the administrations target.
“What we are doing here today is to concretise the love and respect we have for the President for being behind this meeting and for him to tell us to go back and continue the consultations with a timeline so that the resumption of oil production in Ogoniland will commence,” he said.
Likewise, the National Security Adviser complimented the Ogoni people for their confidence in President Tinubu and for embracing dialogue as a path to meaningful progress and lasting solutions.
A representative of the Ogoni leadership, King Festus Babari Bagia Gberesaako XIII, the Gberemene of Gokana Kingdom, communicated the community leaders’ readiness to take part in the process of finding enduring solutions to the lingering difficulties in Ogoniland.
