Ijaw women in the Niger Delta have opposed the ongoing plan to sell the onshore assets of the multinational oil giant, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Limited, to Renaissance Africa Energy.
The women, represented by the Coalition of Ijaw Women Voices (CIWV), expressed awareness of an agreement between the parties for the sale, pending federal government approval.
At a press conference in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, on Wednesday, Ann-kio Briggs, a prominent Ijaw woman leader and activist, urged women from other ethnic groups in the region to join in opposing the proposed sale of Shell’s onshore oil and gas assets.
Briggs stated, “The prospective buyer or buyers of these assets, along with other consortia, must be reminded that the stakeholders of these assets are the people of the Niger Delta region. There is a Local Content Act. The attempt to sell these critical assets located in the Niger Delta, particularly in Ijaw territory, is unacceptable and will be resisted.
“Consequently, CIWV calls on women from all other ethnic nationalities in the Niger Delta to raise their voices in rejecting and resisting this collusion between the federal government and international oil companies to sell off our God-given resources.
“We urge the federal government, the international oil companies, Renaissance Africa Energy, and other oil and gas interests to be transparent and accountable in their unacceptable plans to sell off assets on our Indigenous lands.
“We demand consultation as part of the negotiations and decisions regarding the sale of any oil and gas assets in Ijaw territory.”
