Ogoni laud Obasanjo's peace moves
From Kelvin Ebiri, Port Harcourt
WHILE welcoming President Olusegun Obasanjo's call for reconciliation, the Congress of Ogoni People has also reiterated its members' commitment to a genuine and transparent dialogue process.
The President's concern for reconciliation amongst the Ogoni people is expected to be a precursor to
reconciliation with Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), which was chased out of the area in 1993 and another company wishing to operate in Ogoni.
In a statement issued after the congress held in Bori at the weekend, President of the
Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP), Mr. Ledum Mitee, said the congress had mandated the Peace and Reconciliation Action Committee to immediately call a meeting of all elected and appointed Ogoni leaders, traditional rulers, youths, women, religious leaders and MOSOP. They are to meet and come up with a common position and united front.
According to Mitee, such a united front should be brought before the congress for ratification and
mandate of an Ogoni engagement team that would be the representative of all interest groups.
Mitee was mandated to immediately embark on an extensive and expansive consultation process with all Ogoni people with a view to ensuring that all were informed and carried along. This was done to reduce the incidents of unnecessary suspicions.
MOSOP president noted that the Ogoni people were disposed to dialogue that did not have a predetermined outcome.
In response to Obasanjo's pledge to appoint a facilitator to guide the reconciliation process, the
Ogoni congress, according to him, demanded that the people should be consulted in the appointment of such facilitator who should be of unquestionable integrity to obtain their confidence.
"The congress calls on both the federal and state
governments and agencies like the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), to urgently
demonstrate their commitments to the call for reconciliation by creating the enabling environment
for genuine reconciliation by immediately addressing the vexed issues of developmental neglect of Ogoni and youth empowerment", Mitee said.
