Activist Demands Health Audit In Obelle Community

A community rights activist in Obelle community of Emohua LGA of Rivers State, Henry Eferegbo has called for a comprehensive health audit in the community to determine the comprehensive health impacts of oil pollution by Shell in the community. He made the call when an NGO, Media Awareness and Justice Initiative, MAJI, embarked on an impact assessment visit to the oil bearing and impacted community for a key informant interview.
He further demanded that a health register should be opened in the community and the community health center upgraded to enable it cope with increasing health challenges emanating from the pollution of the environment by Shell Petroleum Development Company Limited,
The community activist stated that Obelle community is faced with pollution induced health problems as a result of lack of safe drinking water following the pollution of the community’s water sources by Shell’s activities. “Pollution of farmlands and lack of lack of locally sourced natural food is believed to also be responsible for the poor health situation,” the activist said.
Hon. Eferegbo, a member of Emohua Legislative Assembly, stated that as a community activist, he will not be tired of drawing the attention of the public to the plights of the community in the hands of Shell and other oil companies operating in their area.
“We have organized protest in front of the company’s facility (Shell) to stop work, we have had engagement meetings where we made demands to Shell asking for cleanup and compensation for the victims of oil spill in the community. After our protest, Shell chose to engage with a very small bracket of the community leadership, leading to non-transparent and questionable discussions across the selected bracket of community leadership. This has contributed to lack of trust and accountability within the community,” said Eferegbo.
Other community members who participated in the key informant interview stated that there is need for an international standard environmental impact assessment to be carried out in Obelle community to checkmate the level of environmental pollution. This should be done using collaborative efforts between government, Shell and the local community.
They lamented that Shell oil exploration and exploitation in the community have led to incessant spills and destruction of community livelihoods.
They said the spills majorly occur from Shell facilities and are mainly caused by the company’s equipment failures. This according to them, happens because Shell has not deemed it right to take care of their facilities.
According to Mr. Eferegbo the notion that oil spillages are caused due to third party interference are mere conspiracies of lies that are told by Shell and the Oil companies operating in the community to cover up their failures and misdeeds.
This publication gathered that a study on oil exploration in Nigeria, using Obelle and Obagi communities as case studies by Justina Adalikwu, Professor of Sociology in Burman University, Canada, asserted that about 50 percent of the total oil output in Emohua local government area comes from the Obelle oil field, which is owned and operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).