The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has accused the campaigners, who are being sponsored by oil companies, for forceful oil resumption in Ogoni of patronising criminal gangs that are currently terrorising the Ogoni area.

The President of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke, made the declaration at a recent meeting with MOSOP kingdom coordinators and affiliate heads held at the organisation’s headquarters in Bori, Ogoniland.

Nsuke said the oil resumption campaigners were being sponsored by the oil industry to destabilise Ogoni and force oil resumption against the wishes of the Ogoni people.

He warned that forceful oil resumption in Ogoni will only kill the Ogoni people and should not be encouraged by any responsible government noting that Ogoni lives were far more important than the oil and so should be given priority.

The MOSOP President warned that if the government goes ahead to resume oil production in Ogoni, the citizens will protest and as usual, government will send in soldiers who will kill us and that is why we are against forceful resumption of oil production now. We do not want any Ogoni lives lost again, he retorted.

Nsuke expressed sadness over the attitude of the Nigerian government towards Ogoni describing it as huge a national shame and a sad reflection of our degrading national values. He urged the government to take responsibility for the crimes of its cronies in Ogoni and call them to order noting that the friends of the Nigerian oil industry and the government were behind the violent crimes being perpetrated in Ogoni today.

The MOSOP leader further said the intention of the oil resumption campaigners is to completely destroy the Ogoni social life with the hope that the Ogoni people will become helpless and unable to rise against any military intervention. He said the calculations of the oil industry and their allies is to create room for a military barracks to be sited in Ogoni to pave way for forceful oil resumption in the area.

He further said no one should think that the government, Shell and their allies who are advocating for forceful oil resumption in Ogoni do not know those wrecking Ogoni. Shell, the government and their campaigners for oil resumption in Ogoni all know those behind the carnage and pains Ogoni is going through at the moment but they have all connived not to protect the Ogoni people.

Nsuke noted that at a meeting on June 22, 2019, in Saapenwa, Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State, the advocates of oil resumption in Ogoni invited the gangs to the meeting. The gangsters acknowledged they were behind the recent Ogoni killings. He further said, the gang members were given Police protection on the said date and an amnesty programme was proposed by the oil resumption advocates.

Nsuke said those behind the current criminal gangs want to push the Ogoni people to a point where insecurity will force the Ogoni to accept the militarisation of the area giving way for a military-backed forceful resumption of oil production.

Ogoni is bleeding because of her oil and the oil industry does not care about the lives of the people in as much as they can gain access to the oil, he said.

While insisting that the attackers are known, Nsuke charged the government to end the attacks on Ogoni by asking Shell and the Nigerian industry as well as those who organised the Saakpenwa meeting of June 22, 2019 to halt the crazy push for oil resumption in Ogoni and also stop the patronage of criminal gangs.

He emphasised the need for increased Police presence in Ogoni and called for greater government and private sector support for the Police in Ogoni.

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