Women Health Tribunal Finds IOCs Guilty Of Environmental Degredation, Demands Holistic Remediation In Host Communities.

By Precious Ahiakwo

“We use to harvest bountiful and healthy crops in our farmland and produce end products from them for sale and for consumption. Ibaa town used to produce and supply the best garri and yam in Rivers State and beyond, but after forty years of Shell oil exploration in my community {sobs}, our farmlands have been destroyed. Our waters are no more safe to drink, and we now go out to buy yams from the northerners and garri from other town” {sobs}.

That was a testimony from a community dweller in Ibaa community in Ikwerre local government area of Rivers State, narrating the environmental degradation caused by IOCs operating in their areas, at the Women’s Health Tribunal set up by the Kebetkache Women Development and Resource center, as part of activities to commemorate the 2023 World Earth Day in Port Harcourt.

Another community dweller in Okwuzi community in Ogba, Egbema, Ndoni LGA in her testimony, narrated that women in that community now face serious health hazards like early menopause, Cancer, Ulcer, strange cough and others.

“Okwuzi as a community, we were known for farming, fishing and hunting by our men, but since the oil exploration started in 1956 here, we have loosed our value, gas flaring has killed our land, pollution everyday and our water has been contaminated. Women are the worst hit with strange diseases, early menopause and cancer. No functioning hospital or health care, not even compensation from this operators. We are dying daily”, she cried, at the Testimony box.

After listening to testimonies from women across seven oil producing communities in Rivers State, the Chief Judge of the Women’s Health Tribunal, Professor Sofiri Peterside found Multinational Oil Companies operating in these communities, guilty of not assuming their responsibilities in terms of maintaining the health of members of their host communities and the land that sustains them.

“The obvious message from the sitting of the tribunal and the judgment thereof is that women are the major drivers of our rural economy. Oil exploration activities have actually created very serious environmental challenges and that’s the matter that came before tribunal: how these oil explorations have adversely affected the women and communities in this area”, he said.

On his part, member of the tribunal for women’s Health, renowned environmentalist, Nnimmo Bassey, explained that the communities are requiring redress, remediation, cleanup and reparation for losses.

He said the essence of the tribunal is to support the affected communities amplify their voices. He further said issues raised at the tribunal by the suffering women will not be swept under the carpet.

However, Executive Director of Kebetkatche Women Development and Resource Center, Emem Okon said “The Women’s Health Tribunal was one of the activities held by Kebetkache to mark the world earth day. The earth day was to create awareness on the environmental challenges facing the planet. The tribunal specifically spotlighted the impacts of oil extraction activities on women in the Niger Delta and the need for urgent measures to be adopted to restore the environment. The tribunal was a call for government and corporations to address the effects of pollution on women”.

She also explained that, “As member of the grassroots organizations who are confronting the domination of big polluters, we propose to accompany the strength, the restoration of mother earth, to reclaim the management of our land, and water resources. We commit to reclaiming our economy and sources of renewable energy”.