In a dramatic escalation of long-simmering tensions, the unified leadership of the ancient Ugborodo community has issued a stark, seven-day ultimatum to International Oil Companies (IOCs) and a key regulatory body, threatening to halt all oil operations within its territory.
The threat was delivered on Wednesday during a tripartite press conference at Ode-Ugborodo, the community’s global headquarters in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State.
The well-attended event was convened by the Ugborodo Community Management Committee (UCMC), the Ikpere Alemeje Women Traders Association, and the Ugborodo Community Youth Development Body (UCYDB), who together represent the community’s recognised administrative organs.
Addressing journalists on behalf of the coalition, Mr Emmanuel Onuwaje, Chairman of the UCMC, stated that the community’s patience had been exhausted after ‘five decades’ of neglect.
‘We cannot be by the river and soap is gradually blinding us,’ he declared, using a local proverb to illustrate their plight amidst vast oil wealth.
The Delta community leaders presented a litany of grievances, accusing IOCs, particularly Chevron Nigeria Limited and the newly renamed Renaissance Africa Energy Company, of systemic marginalisation.
A representative of the community leadership detailed the employment issues, stating, ‘There is an ongoing direct Chevron staff employment exercise. Several qualified Ugborodo indigenes and other Itsekiris applied and have gone through the aptitude tests.
‘While many applicants from other parts of the country have been employed in this process, not a single Ugborodo indigene or Itsekiri from other communities has been employed. This is most unacceptable.’
A central demand is the immediate implementation of a report by the National Boundary Commission (NBC) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), which delineates host communities within a 500-meter coastal buffer zone.
The leadership, in a statement signed by Messrs Onuwaje, Eyengho Samuel Besidone (UCMC Secretary), Wilson Ejeh (UCYDB Chairman), David Mamah (UCYDB P.R.O.), Madam Helen O. Nuco and Madam Paulina Omagbe (Chairlady and Secretary of the Women Traders Association), expressed grave concern over the NUPRC’s delay.
‘We have waited for too long. Our patience cannot remain indefinite,’ the statement read. ‘The communities are becoming restless, and as leaders, it is becoming increasingly difficult to hold back the frustration of our people.’
The community also raised the alarm over an existential threat from the Atlantic Ocean, highlighting the ‘persistent ocean surge gradually washing away our communities’ and the ‘urgent need for a world-class shore protection.’
Further adding to the tension, the leadership condemned a recent meeting in Warri where a rival ‘Governing Council of Ugborodo Community Trust’ was formed. The unified bodies labelled the act a ‘laughable and dead-on-arrival’ attempt by ‘self-exilees’ to destabilise the community.
Concluding their statement, the signatories issued a final warning. ‘Let it be on record that failure of these IOCs, NUPRC and other relevant government agencies to act within a reasonable time frame of seven days, will leave us with no other option but to put a complete stop to all International Oil Companies’ operations within our communities.’
The ultimatum sets the stage for a potential major confrontation in one of Nigeria’s most critical oil and gas-producing regions.