Thirty-one years after their deaths, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu yesterday conferred posthumous national honours of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) on the Late Ogoni leaders: Albert Badey, Edward Kobani, Theophilus Orage and Samuel Orage, collectively remembered as the “Ogoni Four”.
Tinubu announced the conferment while receiving the report of the Ogoni Consultations Committee at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Recall that in 1994, in Ogoniland, Rivers State, internecine strife culminated in the lynching of the four prominent Ogoni chiefs by irate youths. They were reportedly holding a meeting in Giokoo community, Gokana local government area, when they were seized by a mob and gruesomely murdered.
Speaking yesterday, President Tinubu called on the people of Ogoniland to embrace reconciliation and unity after decades of division.
He prayed that the memories of the Ogoni Four would continue to inspire unity, courage, and purpose in Nigeria. “I urge the Ogoni people across classes, communities and generations to close ranks, put this dark chapter behind us, and move forward as a united community with one voice”, he stated.
The President also directed the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribaɗu, to ensure sustainable development and lasting peace in the Niger Delta region.
He pledged his administration’s support for peace, environmental remediation, and economic revival in Ogoniland, while confirming plans to facilitate the resumption of oil production in the area.
Tinubu recalled that in 2022 the previous administration handed the operatorship of the Ogoni oil field to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and its partners, and stressed that his government would build on that decision.
He directed Ribaɗu to begin engagements between Ogoni communities, NNPCL, and other stakeholders to finalise modalities for restarting operations. The Minister of Environment was also tasked with integrating pollution remediation into ongoing dialogue with the people.
Oil exploration in Ogoniland has been suspended since 1993 following protests against environmental degradation, culminating in the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other activists in 1995.
