President Bola Tinubu has posthumously conferred the
national honours of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) on Albert Badey,
Edward Kobani, Theophilus Orage and Samuel Orage, collectively known as the
‘Ogoni Four’.
Tinubu made the announcement on Wednesday during a meeting
with the Ogoni Consultations Committee at the State House in Abuja.
The four men were killed and burnt in 1994, and their deaths
became the basis for the trial of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others, known as the
‘Ogoni Nine’, who were found guilty by the military regime of Sani Abacha and
executed the following year.
“May their memories continue to inspire unity, courage and
purpose among us,” Tinubu said.
The president used the occasion to call for reconciliation
and unity among the Ogoni after decades of social and political division.
He urged the Ogoni people “to close ranks, put this dark
chapter behind us and move forward as a united community with one voice”.
Assuring the Ogoni communities of his administration’s
commitment to the region’s wellbeing, Tinubu spoke about efforts toward peace,
environmental remediation and economic revival.
He also expressed optimism toward the resumption of oil
exploration in Ogoniland.
“I am encouraged by the overwhelming consensus of the Ogoni
communities to welcome the resumption of oil production,” he said.
“The government will deploy every resource to support your
people in this march towards shared prosperity.”
Noting the transition of Ogoni oil fields to the Nigerian
National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and its joint venture partners in
2022, Tinubu promised to build on that development.
“I have directed the national security adviser, Nuhu Ribadu,
to immediately commence engagement between the Ogoni people, NNPCL, its
partners, and all relevant stakeholders to finalise modalities for restarting
operations,” the president said.
“A dead asset is not valuable to the community, the country
or the people. The longer we procrastinate, the worse it is for everyone.”
In addition, Tinubu instructed the minister of environment
to integrate pollution remediation and environmental recovery as key components
of ongoing dialogue with the Ogoni people.
“Let us together turn pain into purpose, conflict into
cooperation, and transform the wealth beneath Ogoni soil into a blessing for
the people and for Nigeria,” he added.
Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser, presented the
report of the committee, confirming stakeholder engagement across all four
Ogoni zones, including local communities, traditional rulers and the diaspora.
Ribadu said the consultation was a transformational process
meant to restore hope and trust in Ogoniland after years of neglect and
conflict.
He affirmed that an inter-agency taskforce, including NNPCL,
relevant ministries and the Ogoni Dialogue Committee, would drive
implementation of the report’s recommendations.
Don Baridam, chairman of the dialogue committee, said the
report reflects “the collective will of the Ogoni people”, and includes demands
for structured participation in oil production, environmental cleanup and
sustainable development frameworks.
The honour for the Ogoni Four comes three months after
Tinubu, on Democracy Day, conferred national awards and granted a state pardon
to Saro-Wiwa and the other members of the Ogoni Nine, nearly three decades
after their execution under Abacha’s military regime.
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