Following a prolonged crisis due to the Bonga oil spill in the Niger Delta region, the Minister of Environment, Mrs Laurentia Mallam, has directed Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) to resolve the lingering crisis.
In a statement by Deputy Director, Press and Public Relations in the Ministry, Mr Ben Goong, recently in Abuja, it said the minister appeal after a meeting with officials of the company.
Mallam disclosed that the meeting was necessary to address myriad of petitions that have flooded her office over the matter, as well as to swiftly relief the parties involved.
The minister, who also assured that the matter would be resolved soon, appealed to the aggrieved communities whose fishing activities have been affected by the spillage to continue to be patient.
“The government is not unaware of the impact of the spillage on your livelihood; everything humanly possible will be done to mitigate your sufferings,’’ Mallam said.
The Company’s Country Chairman, Mr Mutiu Sunmonu, who led a led officials to the meeting said in a statement that the company had since carried out wide consultations with stakeholders and that it would soon fashion out a mechanism that would put the matter to rest.
Sunmonu said the Company had consulted with relevant government organizations including the National Assembly, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and some NGOs.
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