Ondo Communities Assured Of Compensation Over Oil Spillage By House Of Reps

According to the House of Representatives, the communities that were affected by oil spillage and explosion in Awoye, Ilaje Local Council of Ondo State, will be appropriately compensated. It also promised to ensure that the people of the area received environmental justice.

On Friday, Dumnamene Dekor, the Chairman, House Committee on Host Communities, had given the assurance in Awoye, Ondo State, during an on-the-spot assessment of the affected areas and to have interactions with the people on the level of damage to their communities.

A delegation from the state government, which was from the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Health, had also joined the team and were led by the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Banji Ajaka.

Dekor, who had disclosed that three House committees were represented in the delegation that was constituted at the plenary, stated that the team had come from Abuja to get the facts and interact with the people living in the area and how the company that was responsible for the disaster could be liable to remediate, clean up and compensate the victims.

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The committee chairman also stated that the National Assembly, through the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), has been able to provide solutions to the menace. He then urged for all of the operating firms to take environmental issues more seriously.

However, Dekor also stated that the matter couldn’t be decide upon until they submit their report to the National Assembly leadership, which will find a lasting solution to the menace.

As he spoke on the communities’ ordeal, Oba Fredrick Obateru Akinruntan, the Olugbo of Ugbo, bemoaned that the lands, waters and other sources of livelihood of the people had been utterly destroyed by oil exploration.

Oba Akinruntan stated the people of the Niger Delta, who are the hens that lay the golden eggs for the nation, are suffering and emphasised that it is high time that the Federal Government prioritised the welfare of the people.

He then praised the committees and the Ondo State Government for the proactive steps that had been taken to redress the injustice that was done to the people and oil-producing communities at large.