AN environmentalist and Niger Delta activist, Comrade Sheriff Mulade has said that despite several federal government pronouncements against gas flaring in the volatile region, the issue still remains unattended to by the bodies and agencies responsible to bring the oil firms to order.
He said in the oil rich city of Warri, Delta state that the people living in the areas prone to gas flaring are in pains but the federal government lacked the will-power to implement its pronouncements and compel the oil firms to obey its directives.
Comrade Mulade, who is chairman of Kokodiagbene community in Gbaramatu kingdom of the state, lamented the pains of his people, noting that the federal government remains unwilling to enforce its pronouncements and rescue the Niger Delta people from the jaws of oil explorers.
He said: “There have been several presidential pronouncements but gas flaring is still on, why? He who pays the piper dictates the tune. The multinationals are the drivers of the Nigerian economy. So, they dictate the pace for our government. They dictate the economy, our political vision and future for our government.”
The Environmentalist who has championed series of talks for the good of the region, said Nigeria has some of the best environmental laws but the country lacked the willpower to enforce its legislative and executive pronouncements.
He attributed the challenge to corruption insisting that for the fact that some cabals are allegedly benefiting to the detriment of the poor creek dwellers in the region, the problem might remain a perennial challenge in the volatile but rich region.
According to him: “A nation that is ‘fantastically’ corrupt will find it difficult coming out of an issue as this. You can see all the stories in the presidency of 25billion dollar oil and gas scandal. And this is the government that is fighting corruption but corruption resides in Aso Rock.
“How do you expect gas flaring to come to an end? And unfortunately, gas flaring is taking place only in a particular part of the country. Assuming gas flaring is in the North, I want to believe they would have seen the negative impact of gas faring and definitely use a very good instrument to end the disaster.”
