The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has lauded the Nigerian Senate’s decision to establish an Environmental University of Technology (EUT) in the Ogoni area of Rivers State.
MOSOP urged every Ogoni and residents to support the project and ensure its completion as well as the successful take off of the proposed university.
It stated: “While we commend the government for this initiative and also consider it a positive step towards developing the local Ogoni economy, we note that it does not address the fundamental demands of the Ogoni people for self-determination and political autonomy for the Ogoni people.
“We further hold that these interventions have been used as political tools for image laundering by the government of the All Progressives Congress (APC), rather than representing genuine concerns for the welfare of the citizens of the Ogoni kingdom.”
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The MOSOP president, Fegalo Nsuke, who stated the position of the Ogoni people, urged the government to reorganise the Ogoni clean-up programme, cooperate with MOSOP on its development initiatives through the Ogoni Development Authority (ODA) and together move with the Ogoni people on the path of peace and development in Ogoni.
Fegalo called on the Nigerian parliament to consider the MOSOP’s request to exonerate Ken Saro Wiwa from alleged murder case of the Ogoni elders, which later led to his being hung by the military government in 1994.
“We further urge the Nigerian Senate to reconsider its position on the murder of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others given that those who actually committed offences against the state have been granted amnesty and honored by the government.
“Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others, who were victims of a repressive military regime, were not given a fair trial and were unjustly killed.
“We urge the Nigerian Senate to lend their voices to the call for their exoneration if they are truly committed to the peace and progress of Ogoni,” he added.