N45bn  Disbursement: Rivers Community Leaders Decry Police Harassment, Arrest

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

 Community Leaders of Ejama-Ebubu, in Eleme Local Government Area, Rivers State have appealed to the Inspector General (IG) Police,  Usman Baba, the state commission of Police Okon Effiong, to restrain their men from incessant harassment and arrest of its indigenes over compensation fund disbursement by Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).

The SPDC had last year released the sum N45 billion to the community for compensation over oil pollution had serious damage on the environment. The disbursement of fund came after about 30 years of legal battle between the community and the multinational.

On receiving the fund, which community later got the sum of N23billion, they set up 13-man Disbursement Committee to distribute the sum of N5 million each to every member of the community and also carried out road construction projects.

The committee members are:   Augustus Yanwi; Emmanuel Oluji, Peter Oguru; Joseph Ogosun; Cyril Agbara, Mr. Ngobe D. Ngobe;   Mimi A. Mimi;Ferdinand Olube;  Ejor Osarollorma;  Hope Ollornwi; Mr. Frank Nnah; and Apostle Nkinken Nwafor.

Speaking to journalists yesterday on the recent development in the community, a lawyer to the 13-man disbursement committee, also known as Community Development Committee (CDC) members, Ayodele Salami, noted that the appeal had become necessary following the persistent invitation, arrest, transfer to Abuja and detention of innocent indigenes by the police just for being a member of a fund disbursement committee.

The lawyer revealed that latest attempted arrest of the Paramount Ruler of the community, HRH Chief Peter Oguru, also a member of the committee during his late father’s  burial activities was in the community last Friday, was most humiliating.

He disclosed that the committee members have suffered persistent harassments,  intimidations, arrests and detentions by the Police, masterminded by some persons in the communities who are aggrieved that they were not appointed into the committee.

According to him, each of the members has been invited, arrested and transferred to Abuja more than once over unverifiable charges and outrageous bail sum demanded before they would be released.

 “On Friday December 2, at 7pm policemen stormed the palace of Chief Peter Oguru and forcefully tried to arrest him. The police humiliated and rubbished him and the traditional stool, but for the swift intervention of the community women, they police eventually dropped an invitation letter and left.

“This same chief had ordered the payment of N5 million to every indigene of the community from money paid to the community by Shell.

 “This persistent harassment began since June 2022. Many member of the Committee have been arrested by the police at one point or the other. Some were invited arrested and kept in custody for over four days.

“Our appeal is that the Nigerian Police should respect the rule of law. There is a court judgement on ground barring the police from intimidating members of the Committee.”

Speaking on the history of the disbursement of the money, Salami said: “The funds is from SPDC for the oil spills in the community from their facility in the 1980s, of which the community has been in court with Shell since 1983 and later on in 1991, and eventually got judgement of N10billion compensation in their favour in the 90s.

 “Shell failed to pay the N10 billion compensation then, while the compound interest on the money grew to N285 billion in 2021 when the Supreme Court order Shell to pay the community.

“Shell came for an out of court settlement and the sum of N45billion was released for the community. Half of the money went to the legal counsel who has been handling the case without a dime from the community for 30 years, N23billion came to the community.

“From this N23billion, they have paid over 4,000 members of the community the sum of N5million each. The committee has also constructed 8.5km roads within the community.”