BY Victor Ahiuma-Young
WARRI—Ijaw of Egbema and Gbaramatu Kingdoms in Delta State have petitioned Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, expressing misgiving over perceived unhealthy collaboration between Chevron Nigeria Limited, Government of Delta and Ugborodo com-munity against other stake-holders in Escravos Gas to Liquid Project, EGTL.

Under the umbrella of Egbema and Gbaramatu Central Development Council, EGCDC, the peti-tion by E. E Doyah-Tiomo and Imeleye Emmanuel, Chairman and Secretary respectively, detailed the group’s grievances:

It said: “The purpose of this letter is to inform you that Ugborodo community is one of the several stakeholders in Chevron’s Escravos operations, including the tank farm, EGTL, EGP 3, EGP 4, among others.

“We, the Ijaw of Egbema and Gbaramatu commu-nities, are major stake-holders in Chevron opera-tions in the western swamp, especially in the tank farm and the EGTL project. There are also Itsekiri from communities other than Ugborodo and Ilaje.

“We want to make it clear to Chevron, the govern-ment of Delta State and NNPC that we are major stakeholders in Chevron’s tank farm operations and the gas projects (EGTL, EGP3, EGP4, ELOPS, etc). We will not allow any contractor, who does not have the backing of our communities to operate the catering service contract in the tank farm.

“Chevron should not think that its operations can only be disrupted or sustained by Ugborodo community.”

The Ijaw of Egbema and Gbaramatu Kingdoms hold the ace for peace and continued sustainability of Chevron’s operations. We are committed to creating a conducive environment for the company to operate and realise its core business objectives.

In return, we demand for a fair and equitable treatment from Chevron, NNPC and the Government of Delta State,” they added.