By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
Niger Delta Congress has lampooned former President Olusegun Obasanjo for his response to a letter by a Niger Delta leader, Edwin Clark, over the Niger Delta oil.
In a rejoinder on Tuesday, Obasanjo declared that the oil within the region belonged to the entire people of Nigeria.
On Wednesday, the South-South coalition said from paragraphs 4 to 12 of his reply, Obasanjo emphasized the constitutionality of “the forceful expropriation of Niger Delta”.
The Niger Delta Congress (NDC) chided the ex-Head of State for failing to see the absurdity in centering his arguments on legalities “conceived by members of the larger ethnic nationalities which Obasanjo belongs”.
A statement by the spokesman, Ovunda Eni, noted that in paragraph 13, Obasanjo, not only admitted Niger Delta resources was eyed by both sides during the civil war, he asked the people to be appreciative because the situation would have worsened if the Biafran side won.
Eni, a lawyer, thanked the retired General for the “revelations” which he said aren’t new to the region.
“It is important for the Niger Delta people to take note that its territory and people are seen as war booty won and/or lost. This thinking continues to influence the relationship between the Niger Delta and the larger nationalities; not neighbours, not brothers, not comrades, not friends, but war booty.
“In paragraph 18, the former President made it known that he has been a champion of equity and fairness in Nigeria. And in his bid to ensure this equity, he believes that it is necessary to “suppress” ethnic nationalities, or “tribes” in his own words, so the state can emerge.
“What he failed to reveal is that suppressing “tribes” in a state is in reality nothing more than an attempt to create a state where smaller nationalities are silenced, or annihilated so their lands and resources are annexed and controlled by the larger ethnic nations who also make up the state.
“We have seen the ruthlessness with which this suppression as a strategy has been applied, most importantly with the genocide in Odi which left over 10% of the population dead in 1999; a genocide perpetrated by Nigerian troops when President Obasanjo himself was the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.
“President Obasanjo stating that he would continue to push for the suppression of “tribes” in the Nigerian state until he “breathes” his “last”, is Obasanjo pledging allegiance to a genocidal ideology. Such audacity can only come when a man has successfully carried out a massacre.
“This does not only show the failure of the Nigerian state he swears by, but also shows the complicity of the international community he hobnobs with and whose interests in the Niger Delta he has served. This also shows the failure of the Niger Delta leadership to stand by and for our people.”
