Nigeria Ex-Militant:Unrest May Restart If Spill Issues Unresolved

7th Jul 2010 18:17

By Benoit Faucon Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--A former militant leader has warned conflict could restart in Nigeria's Niger Delta because of the way oil spills are compensated, alleging the payments from oil companies are benefiting elites and not the population. But oil majors active in Africa's largest oil basin deny this, saying they are managing compensation processes in a transparent way. Speaking to Dow Jones Newswires by telephone in a recent interview, Tumini Hart, the former head of the Okoloma Ekpangi armed faction in the Delta's Bonny Island, said: "Pollution...is the reason why my boys took up arms." If pollution isn't remediated, "there will be surely" a conflict, he said, speaking in general terms and rather than about his former group in particular. Hart's group was part of a broader militant movement whose acts of sabotage and attacks contributed to the shutdown in output of 1 million barrels a day until most of its commanders accepted a presidential pardon last year. "Agitation will start. The government will bring the army. The people will start fighting," said the former militant, who operated under the nom de guerre "Papi" before accepting the amnesty. "The [oil] companies are using the government backing to commit a crime," Hart said. Hart acknowledged that the companies are paying compensation but alleged only chiefs and village elders are benefiting from it. "They are paying [compensation] to chiefs, not to the people," he said. "What they do is not [a] remedy." "In Bonny, there are only fishermen, people depend on the river," he added. The ex-militant's assertion echoes allegations frequently made by community members that payments to make up for pollution aren't transparent. Hart's warning comes after a coalition of non-governmental organizations last week called for an independent fund in Nigeria to compensate spills in a transparent way. The fund would emulate BP PLC's (BP) decision to set aside $20 billion in an escrow account to compensate victims and clean up the oil disaster in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. But foreign oil companies in Nigeria denied their payments aren't transparent and that these aren't benefiting locals. Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) said it "strives to be a good neighbor and corporate citizen. We seek to achieve this through active and constructive engagement with the surrounding communities and their leaders." "Over the past 10 years, ExxonMobil has invested nearly $300 million in community support programs," it said, including vocational training for Bonny indigenes. A spokeswoman for Eni SpA (E) said that its "compensation payments are regulated by accountability mechanisms, which involve local authorities." She said the payments are contingency measures adding to development programs, such as scholarships, micro-credit schemes and water and health programs. A spokesman for Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA), the operator of Nigeria's largest onshore oil joint-venture, SPDC, said that "payments follow a transparent negotiation process and claimants are often represented by attorneys." He added that SPDC last year paid "more than $4 million in compensation [for spills], as well as providing clean water and food to affected communities where needed." The spokesman also said that oil theft or sabotage "accounted for almost 98% of the volume of oil spilled" during 2009. Total SA (TOT) declined to comment. -By Benoit Faucon, Dow Jones Newswires; +44-20-7842-9266; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 07, 2010 13:17 ET (17:17 GMT)