This time, the scope went deeper. Why Shell’s oil spills cleanup in Ogoniland comes off as a scam
The Ogoni Nine executed in 1995 by the General Sani Abacha military regime in a distant imaginary place where no other human can go, 30 years after, would perhaps want to think that they saw ahead all the new environmental issues coming up in their land.
Even though the Niger Delta region of Nigeria boasts the world’s third largest mangrove ecosystem, all those greeneries are thought to be dying bit-by-bit, earlier than their natural shelflives would have called for and the London headquartered multinational Shell is being seen somewhere close to the heart of it.
Crude oil spills allegedly from Shell’s mining equipment over decades have reportedly sparked some sort of silent famine. This is a scenario which pictures fishing communities in the renowned Ogoniland in Rivers State rueing their luck because now with their environment rapidly degrading, it means they have to struggle hard just to make a living.
A BBC World Service report by the Lagos, West Africa bureau got tactical in trying to strap the disbanded pieces lying alone mysteriously in plain sight together. It is showing thanks to United Nations data in some cases, that the shortage of positive steps by the Federal Government of Nigeria or the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (Hyprep) acting on its behalf, likewise the main leaders representing the suffering communities, along with some politicians, might be the stumbling block hindering any tangible breakthrough in trying to restore a depleting member of the natural world, that is, the mangroves, for the Ogoni people who live off it.
![A report covered on the BBC World Service captures Patience Ogboe who said the crop of maize she planted four months back have been growing abnormally, so here comes the risk of starvation when farm produce can't fully form. [BBC News, Niger Delta]](https://i0.wp.com/meiza.ng/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/A-report-covered-on-the-BBC-World-Service-captures-Patience-Ogboe-who-said-the-crop-of-maize-she-planted-four-months-back-have-been-growing-abnormally.png?resize=708%2C396)
According to the BBC investigation, millions of U.S dollars – the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited is one of the donors – have been allocated to the urgent task of cleaning up the Niger Delta’s inland waterways as well as its land, the finance often does not go the way it is meant to go.
This is believed to be the reason natives feel like the task force supposed to be heading the recovery of their land and rivers has been taking them for a ride or simply being deceptive about taking action because making progress is just not how things look.
Paulina Agbekpekpe living in one of the affected communities, Bodo saw the ecosystem damage happen. The place was greener, not only mangroves but all by the shoreline – there were pawpaw trees, palm trees and more, the 50-year-old told the BBC.
Due to environmental troubles, most of the children – from the drinking water – have got diseases. Many have died. I’ve lost eight kids. My husband is sick.
She sees a dead end because our livelihoods have been taken away. People in Bodo are hungry and suffering.
There is more that the BBC World Service report by Simi Jolaoso had to share.
As the cleanup project, funded by various oil firms to the tune of $1billion, continues, the BBC investigation reveals that Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), has ignored multiple warnings about corruption and mismanagement.
The areas that were supposed to be remediated remain polluted, and the local communities are left to bear the brunt of the environmental damage.
It is why the situation has led to a civil trial in London, where lawyers representing the Ogoni communities argue that Shell must take responsibility for the pollution caused by its infrastructure.
The trial, set to begin on the eve of Valentine’s Day 2025 will assess whether oil pollution by a private company can be considered a violation of a community’s fundamental human rights under the Nigerian Constitution and African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.
Ogoni people, along with other affected communities, continue to fight for a clean and healthy environment. The question remains: What exactly has been done to clean up places like Ogoniland, and who must be held accountable for the suffering of the people who call this region home?
Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.
