Pipelines Attack: Chevron urged to listen to aggrieved parties

Chevron

Itsekiri Environmental Protection Initiative, IEPI, has urged Chevron Nigeria Limited and the Nigerian government to resolve the trouble between them and those agitating for slots in Chevron’s employment quota.

National Coordinator of IEPI, Ojumude Tosan Bishop, in a statement, urged government to resolve the vandalism of multiple pipelines at Chevron Nigeria Limited’s operational locations, which are Olero, Dibi, and Abiteye.

Bishop urged Chevron to adhere to its employment quota in line with the Nigeria Local Content Act, 2010, and the unconditional conversion of VTP5/OTP2 and VTP6.

The statement appealed to the Nigerian security agencies not to employ the use of military force to curb the situation, warning that it may lead to an escalation.

Condemning the pipeline vandals, the group told Chevron to learn from their past experiences and listen to persons who have stakes in Chevron’s daily operations, insisting that they have no power to resolve the current crisis.

He stated: “Environmental degradation of air, soil, and water is the primary effect of pipeline vandalism, followed by the threat to national security, economic sabotage, human health, etc. As a professional body, this has become necessary to serve as a pre-warning against a renewed conflict escalation in the Niger Delta region and an environmental degradation alert to the subconsciousness of all actors addressed above. In our honest opinion, we call for the employment of diplomatic measures, which include a roundtable dialogue between the government, multinationals, and host community stakeholders/organisations to curb the situation and bring to an end such acts of vandalism that pose a great threat to national security and the environment, which is our primary concern.”