…Tasks oil companies on cleaning Niger-Delta environment, jobs provision

By Adeniyi Ifetayo

TODAY marks exactly three years that the Olu of Warri, His Majesty Ogiame Atuwatse III, ascended the throne of his forefathers. In this interview, he shares the challenges and lessons he had learned in the last 36 months. He also spoke on what he had done to address youth unemployment in his kingdom and why International Oil Companies, IOCs, must clean-up and restore Warri environment and other oil producing communities to their pre-oil exploitation state.

Congratulations Your Majesty! How has it been in the past three years?

We must always start with gratitude; God has been faithful; He has been gracious. No two days are the same, each day is different, there is always uniqueness of each day with its own challenges, be it cultural, traditional matters, sometimes political, social, economic, it varies; and all of it collectively adds to the tapestry that has been the last three years. So, we thank God; each day comes with its own challenge but the challenge makes you better, stronger.

Speaking on challenges, what are the major things that you have learned since you assumed the exalted throne of your forefathers?

The major thing that I have learned; honestly, it’s really God that gives wisdom. It’s very easy to be on the outside looking and thinking: this is my analysis, this is how it should have been handled or done, this is my decision no matter the topic or the situation. However, when you are on the seat and you have a true, clear, panoramic view of everything and that one dimensional approach that you may have had when you were standing where you were, will shock you. That is one thing that has hit hard. So, it needs a lot of patience, never being too eager to take a stand and just allowing God to show you the full picture before you make a move.

What measures did you put in place to address youth unemployment in Warri kingdom?

One thing I know we have done well is to speak on behalf of our people; our people here, dealing with IOCs where they feel they are not properly treated, feeling marginalized, feeling as though other groups are favoured over them. We lend support to their agitations when we find that there is truth to their claims. So, obviously once the weight of our voice is added, it makes it more serious, and I think we have seen some increased consideration for our people when ordinarily it would have been overlooked with divide and conquer tactics. So, we try to bridge those gaps.

We made efforts to assist our people with money, initiatives and scholarships. Some of it were funded by us, some by the networks and resources we have, connecting people to help, finance some initiatives. And because of the respect they have for our name, reputation, and brand they are able to gladly give their resources to that endeavour.

Honestly, what comes to mind, the Bible says a good name is better than gold and silver. When people truly recognise that this person has a good name it really opens doors of assistance. So, that has helped us.

How do you intend to partner with the IOCs in your kingdom?

We all know that global pundits keep telling us that we are in the final phase of carbon sources of energy. According to their analysis, in another 50 or maybe 60 years, the world will literally pull out of oil and move on to more greener sources. Partly, we hope they have it wrong, and the IOCs are here for another 100 years.

But if truly the time has come for us to move on from oil, we hope we are able to encourage the IOCs that met this environment, in Nigeria six decades ago, as a pristine environment and made hundreds of billions of dollars, the least you can do as a parting gift to this land is to do a legacy project. Restore the environment back to how you met it, planting mangroves, cleaning up spills whether directly done by your company or not, bend over backwards to restore the environment.

I think if that is the one thing they do, man in his environment will always find a way to survive, to thrive. But if the environment is destroyed that leaves you with next to no options.

So, if I was to really encourage the IOCs, one thing everybody will like us to tell them is: ‘We want jobs, money in our pockets’; that’s one thing. But if they give you all that and your environment is destroyed, when they leave you’ll regret that you are not back in your original habitat as it was before.