The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has rejected an agreement between Sahara Energy and West African Gas Limited (WAGL), an affiliate of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), claiming it was not done in good faith and violates the resolve of the Ogoni people to participate in oil resumption efforts in their land.
The President of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke in a statement issued on Sunday described the Sahara-WAGL deal as fraudulent, deceptive and an insult to the intelligence and integrity of the Nigerian nation, stressing that Ogoni people in particular will not be fairly treated in the extraction of their God-given natural resources.
The MOSOP president noted that the Financial and Technical Services Agreement (FTSA) between Sahara Energy and West African Gas Limited (WAGL), raises some avoidable ethical questions because it didn’t follow due process.
Nsuke called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to cancel the FTSA between Sahara Energy and WAGL noting that the agreement is fraught with irregularities and deceptive, claiming that the officials who brokered the deal are projecting Sahara Energy as the player to get the nod to resume oil production in Ogoni.
He said that the alleged projection of Sahara Energy by some bigwigs in NNPC is akin to returning Ogoni almost three decades backwards, explaining it is the sole reason the Ogoni people are banking on presidential intervention for fair treatment of the Ogoni people.
According to Nsuke, Sahara Energy should give up on the Ogoni area to allow an engagement in the interest of the country and the people, explaining that the recently signed agreement did not follow due process, was not reached in good faith, and therefore against the country’s interest.
He said: “What Sahara and the NNPC did in the FTSA between Sahara and WAGL is shameful and depicts high-level corruption in public service of our country”
“WAGL is an affiliate of both Sahara Energy and the NNPC. How then can Sahara Energy go into an agreement with its own affiliate? It’s as good as going into an agreement with itself. This is deceptive and fraudulent.
“Sahara Energy is certainly not a company the Ogoni people want on their soil and we are calling on Mr President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu to terminate any deal between the NNPC and Sahara Energy over OML 11 and to allow for an inclusive arrangement that considers a fair treatment of the Ogoni people in the distribution of revenues from natural resource extraction on Ogoni soil.
“The last Ogoni Congress has been unequivocal on the Ogoni demand for justice and has given a clear path to resolve the three-decade-old conflict between all critical parties. It will be good to explore this path to peace and development for Ogoni and for our country.
Nsuke accused Sahara Energy and the NNPC of frustrating the progress made by MOSOP to achieve a permanent solution to the Ogoni problem.
He said that MOSOP and the Ogoni people to take the oil from Shell and therefore the position of MOSOP should be taken into consideration in decisions relating to oil production resumption in Ogoni.
