President of the Ijaw National Council (INC), Professor Benjamin Okaba, has decried the neglect of the Niger Delta despite generating over 75 per cent of Nigeria’s oil wealth, declaring that the people of the region still live in shanties and survive on less than $2 daily.
Okaba, who spoke in Abuja on Wednesday while delivering the lead paper at the 10th Anniversary Public Lecture of GbaramatuVoice, accused successive governments of presiding over what he described as an “ecological genocide” in the oil-rich region.
He said Nigeria had earned more than $1 trillion in oil revenue between 1960 and 2024, yet Niger Delta communities, which bear the brunt of oil exploration, remained impoverished and devastated by environmental degradation.
“Our freshwater, swamp, and mangrove forests have been mutilated by multinationals. Our rivers, once pure, now carry the toxic signature of extraction without restoration. Those who suffer degradation, those who bear the oil, those whom God has given the resource, should be the primary benefactors of the dividends of the oil industry. Anything otherwise will keep us in this trajectory of suffering, crisis, and conflict,” he said.
Okaba condemned the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), particularly the 3 per cent allocation to host communities, describing it as an “insult.” He argued that bureaucratic bottlenecks have ensured no community has been able to access the so-called community trust funds since the law came into effect.
According to him, divestment by international oil companies (IOCs) has further worsened the plight of the people, as marginal fields were being handed to politically connected individuals “who cannot distinguish between palm wine and oil,” leaving host communities poorer.
The INC leader also accused security agencies of collusion in oil theft, estimating the losses from pipeline vandalism at over $27 billion annually. He warned that without justice and equity, Nigeria risks perpetuating a cycle of conflict and underdevelopment.
“The Niger Delta has been the goose that laid the golden egg, only to be sacrificed at every fiscal cycle. This must end. We demand justice, equity, and a future where our people are no longer slaves in their own land,” he stated.
The event, which marked the 10th anniversary of GbaramatuVoice, attracted eminent personalities who commended the media platform for amplifying the voice of the Niger Delta people.
The Ovie of Idjerhe Kingdom, His Royal Majesty, King Obukohwo Monday Arthur Whiskey, lamented the continued deprivation of the region despite its central role in Nigeria’s economy.
“If you take the state of roads in the Niger Delta, if you take the employment opportunities, if you take the development yardstick, we have nothing to show for what we are producing. If you can construct a Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos, what stops you from constructing such fantastic infrastructure in the Niger Delta?” he asked.
He hailed GbaramatuVoice as “our CNN”, insisting that only those who live the Niger Delta reality can accurately tell its story.
Also speaking, King Bubaraye Dakolo, chairman of the Bayelsa State Traditional Rulers Council, praised the media group for filling a gap “mainstream media has not been able to tell,” while Peace Ambassador Sheriff Mulade described it as pivotal in projecting the struggles and triumphs of the region.
Representing the Chief of Army Staff, Major-General Oluremi Fadairo called for collective responsibility in tackling insecurity, urging communities to shun militancy and oil bunkering.
In his welcome remarks, Publisher and CEO of GbaramatuVoice, Jacob Brakere Abai, described the journey as a decade of “telling stories that matter” and pledged expansion into a Media Institute to train future storytellers.
