Ogoni Group Rejects Oil Exploration, Demands Ken Saro-Wiwa’s Exoneration Before Drilling Resumes

A leading Ogoni advocacy group has rejected federal government plans to resume oil exploration in Ogoniland, warning that operations must not begin until decades-old demands for justice and environmental restoration are addressed.

The Ogoni Voice Achievers Foundation (OVAF) said restarting exploration without fulfilling the recommendations of the 2011 United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report would be “deeply unjust” and risk triggering unrest in the Niger Delta.

In a strongly worded statement signed by OVAF’s founder and board chairman, Ambassador Gospel Barifii Gokana, the group insisted that no drilling should take place until the Ogoni people are fully consulted, reparations are determined, and environmental cleanup efforts are completed.

‘History cannot be erased’

OVAF called for the posthumous exoneration of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists executed in 1995, arguing that symbolic justice was central to restoring dignity to communities devastated by decades of oil exploitation.

“The government’s selective engagement with a few individuals behind closed doors cannot replace free, prior, and informed consent,” Gokana said, accusing authorities of making critical decisions “from Abuja offices without listening to the suffering of Ogoni people.”

The group also criticised what it described as a lack of transparency, citing the absence of environmental impact assessments, benefit-sharing frameworks, and safety guarantees.

Demands for justice and inclusion

OVAF outlined non-negotiable conditions:

• Full implementation of UNEP’s cleanup recommendations.
• Inclusive stakeholder consultations involving MOSOP, women, youth, and traditional councils.
• Binding legal frameworks for equitable benefit sharing.
• Independent monitoring of environmental and safety standards.

Gokana appealed directly to President Bola Tinubu to “respect our rights, lives, lands, and futures,” warning that ignoring these demands could reignite tensions in the volatile region.

The intervention underscores the deep distrust between the Ogoni community and successive governments, three decades after Saro-Wiwa’s death made Ogoniland a global symbol of resistance against environmental and economic injustice.