Few days after some workers protested its planned relocation to Lagos, more than 1,000 youths under the aegis of the Onne Youths Council (OYC) on Tuesday staged another peaceful protest at the office of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) in the Oil and Gas Free Zone, Onne, Rivers State.
During the protest, the youths asked the company to rescind its decision to relocate its Supply Base from the free zone to Lagos port.
Philip John Tenwa, President of OYC, who led the protest, said the planned relocation will lead to the loss of more than 5,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The protesters carried placards with various inscriptions condemning the planned relocation and requested relevant authorities to intervene in the matter.
He said: “We are here today on behalf of our members and the Onne Community to draw the attention of government to the plan by SNEPCo to relocate its Supply Base from the Onne Port to Lagos.
Recall that SNEPCo last week directed that its property and equipment including turbines, engine spares and miscellaneous equipment spares be loaded into containers and moved out of Onne Port, where it had operated for more than 20 years, to another port in Lagos.
“This move by SNEPCo holds serious implications for the Onne community and the entire Rivers State. This is because SNEPCo, which is the operator of the Bonga field, at present, supports more than 5,000 direct and indirect jobs at its Supply Base in Onne. There are also several small businesses and contractors whose businesses and fortunes are tied to SNEPCo,” he said.
Tenwa also said that the relocation of SNEPCo out of the Onne Free Zone also has negative affect on the economy of Rivers State and the entire Niger Delta region.
“It will also put the means of livelihood of many families and the future of our children at risk by pushing many to the job market.
He said while the Federal and State Governments have worked hard to ensure peace in the Niger Delta region, the relocation of the SNEPCo to Lagos can jeopardise the peace currently being enjoyed in the region.
“Also, we are all aware of the huge congestion in Lagos Port and the underutilisation of the Rivers Port, Port Harcourt and Onne Port. The ports in Lagos are bursting at the seams and the Apapa gridlock, which has practically hampered vehicular movement in Lagos, is clear evidence of this. As a result, the Federal Government has expressed its readiness to revive operations at the Port Harcourt, Onne and other ports in the South-South. Why then is SNEPCo not complementing this effort? What does it stand to gain by abandoning a community that has hosted its Supply Base for more than 20 years?
He said that in more than two decades, nobody had disrupted the activities of SNEPCo or any other company operating in Onne. “Therefore, we do not deserve to be abandoned at this trying time by SNEPCo.
“In the past three years, no fewer than 15,000 people have lost their jobs at the Onne Port and the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone as a result of the economic downturn in the country. We think SNEPCo should not compound this situation with the relocation to Lagos. This is more so as the Federal Government is working hard to ensure that oil companies domicile their offices and operations in the Niger Delta region where they make their fortune,” Tenwa further stated.
The protesting youths later moved from the SNEPCo Supply Base to the Palace of the Paramount Ruler of Onne Community, King John Dennis Osaronu, where they informed the king of their action.
Osaronu commended the youths for their peaceful conduct and also called on SNEPCo to rescind its decision to leave the community.
“We appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari, Governor Nyesom Wike and other well-meaning Nigerians to stop this move by SNEPCo,” he pleaded.
AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE
