The Movement For The Survival of Ogoni People, MOSOP, has again, renewed its demand on the Nigerian state to exonerate slain environmental rights activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogonis of any wrongdoing.
Ken Saro-Wiwa and his other eight Ogoni brothers were gruesomely murdered by the military junta in Nigeria led by General Sani Abacha on November 10th 1995. A killing that attracted international condemnation and also earned Nigeria suspension from the Commonwealth Organisation.
President of MOSOP, Professor Olu Andah Wai-Ogosu made the call at a memorial martyrs lecture to commemorate the 19th Anniversary of November 10 otherwise known as Martyrs’ Day in Ogoniland held at Bane Town in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State.
Wai-Ogosu said the exoneration of the the Ogoni nine would help to heal the wounds in the hearts of all Ogonis.
“I want to use today to call the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who was Ken Saro-Wiwa’s colleague from the side of NADECO to as a matter of urgency initiate the process of exonerating Ken and the eight others.
“We will push that issue beyond the jargon of pardon and exoneration because we believe that the official clearing of the names of our heroes will heal the wounds in the hearts of all of us,” he said.
The MOSOP president also declared that the time for negative agitation for the emancipation of Ogoni people was over, saying that the new leadership under him would use dialogue and engagement to achieve the dreams of the Ogoni forebears
“This is the time of meaningful engagement, We have pass the time of negative agitation. We have started already to move MOSOP back to the international arena. As I speak to you all, we have started meaningful engagement with the United Nations Unrepresented Peoples’ Organisation, UNPO. In the next few months, we are going to revive the vision that would remove helplessness and hopelessness in our faces,” he assured.
He said MOSOP is now positioned with the mandate of being the mouthpiece of the Ogoni people saying, “Ogoni has four local governments councils and they are with us with the charge to reconcile the people, reposition MOSOP to be the mouthpiece and voice of the people but we can only be the voice if we are going to be forthright, courageous and stand for the truth”.
Wai-Ogosu promised to revive the spirit of the struggle in Ogoniland and to also create source of livelihoods for the people through empowerment
“This movement is based on justice, fair play, equity, free speech, to be able to say your own, not to be cowed. MOSOP is well positioned now to take it up from where Ken left. I want to promise you that. We’ll start by recreating love for ourselves, reconciling ourselves because that’s why development also eluded us.
The MOSOP president used the event to announced plans by the organisation to empower the people with fishing tools to get them back to their original source of livelihoods.
“In the next few weeks, MOSOP is going to kickstart back to fishing project because that was the major occupation of our people. We are starting that project and in a couple of weeks we’ll be empowering families in three communities of Ogoni such as Kaa, Sii and Gwara with boats and fishing tools appropriate to those different ecosystems and we are going to charge them to form a fishing cooperative society so that they can enlarge the space for more communities and participation,” he announced.
The MOSOP president further called for support from all stakeholders and well-meaning Ogonis to sustain the struggle for better life for the Ogoni people.
In his speech, Rear Admiral John Nicholas Bakpo (Rtd), recounted the incidence that led to the killing of the Ogoni 9 and called on the people to not to make the mistake or engage in any action that would lead to killing of any set of Ogoni leaders.
He urged MOSOP to unite the people and work to ensure that the aim for which the martyrs died are not in vain.
“I must tell my own Ogoni people that we must not make the mistakes of the past where we were divided against ourselves to create an opportunity to silence us because that’s what is happening now with this clandestine moves to re-enter Ogoni we see seeing some division among Ogoni people and the only thing we are seeing now is a situation whereby we will also fight ourselves and those who think they are in front now would be silenced. We must learn from history,” he said.
Bakpo added: “I enjoin Ogoni people to unite and remain resolute in their quest for emancipation. Violence cannot solve it but we’ll not also keep quiet to see thesame evil repeat itself on Ogoniland, therefore I urge MOSOP to rise up to the occasion and make sure that the sacrifice of our heroes in the past won’t be in vain”.
In a goodwill message at the event, HM, Eze Obioha Nwachukwu Nnam-Obi III (Eze-Ogba of Ogbaland) felicitated with Ogoni people and charged them and the leadership of MOSOP to remain united and forge ahead in the struggle with a renewed vigour to emancipate the people.
“I want to also call on MOSOP to hold onto the baton, recharge its batteries, to match forward with strength and courage, to look deeply into those things that would move the people forward which summaries why we are here.
“It’s therefore my call on Mr President and believing that with you at the saddle, carrying the whole hopes and aspirations of the entire Ogoni people, you would bring thesame dexterity, you would bring thesame forthrightness, that depth of thoughts for making sure that they realise the reason why the struggle started.
“I call on you people of Ogoni to rally round your leaders, to listen to them, they will think of the best for you, they can’t afford to do less because Ken Saro-Wiwa and the rest have shown the way already so they cannot deviate,” Nnam-Obi stated.
Earlier, Chairman of the Central Planning Committee for the celebration, Dr Henry Kpunee expressed delight at the event, stating that it affords the Ogoni people the opportunity to reflect on struggle started by their forebears who laid down their lives for their emancipation.
“This event is very significant to the Ogoni people because it is an opportunity for them to remember their martyrs who stated the struggle for the liberation of Ogoni land headed by Ken Saro-Wiwa that were murdered by the Nigerian state and this is the 19th Anniversary of their killing. So it’s an opportunity for the Ogoni people to come together, remember them and chart a way forward,” he stated.
He also urged the people to continue the struggle peacefully as exemplified by Ken Saro-Wiwa.
Saro-Wiwa advocated for peaceful struggle all through the period he embarked on this struggle in Ogoniland. He never advocated for violence and so my advice for the Ogoni people is to continue to live in peace and ensure they there is unity amongst themselves because there is strength in unity. In unity we can achieve alot. Let us be firm a common and formidable front that we can use to drag development to our land,” he said.
Kpunee, who is also the Secretary of Khana LGA thanked the four council chairmen of Ogoni led by the chairman of Khana, Martins Nwigbo for brokering peace between the disputing factions of MOSOP and expressed the hope that the organisation would henceforth be speaking with a united voice.
Highpoints of the event were lecture on the Internationalization of the Ogoni Identity by Professor Chris Akani of the Department of Political Science, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education and book launch to commemorate the day and presentation of posthumous awards to some persons that supported the Ogoni struggle in the past such Professor Claude Ake, Barrister Oronto Natei Douglas, Sr Majella MaCaron and Mrs Rhoda Komdu Nwinaalee (Miideekor).
