Umu-Aye landowners accuse TotalEnergies of 27 years of neglect, unemployment, land grabbing and environmental damage in Rivers.

Members of the Umu-Aye family in Ogbogu, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, on Monday staged a peaceful protest over alleged neglect and marginalisation by TotalEnergies E & P Nigeria Limited.

The protesters, who described themselves as the principal land donors to the Ogbogu Flow Station and associated facilities under Oil Mining Lease (OML) 58, expressed frustration over what they said was 27 years of exclusion from employment, contracts and development benefits.

It was observed that the demonstrators, mostly women, carried placards reading: “No MoU since 1999,” “Land rent agreement expired,” “We need graduate employment,” “Replace sacked contract staff,” and “Register our company with ECP.”

Speaking during the protest, the Umu-Aye family secretary, Mr. Nwakanma Agi, said the community had suffered prolonged infrastructural and human capital neglect despite hosting major facilities of the multinational.

“More than 60 per cent of TotalEnergies’ facilities here are on our land, yet we hardly feel their presence,” Agi said.

He alleged that since 1999, no indigene of Umu-Aye had been employed by the company, despite the availability of qualified graduates in engineering and other technical fields.

“The few people employed in 1999 have all retired. Since then, no employment. Our people are reduced to menial jobs like grass cutting, while major contracts are given to outsiders,” he said.

Agi further alleged that additional land was recently taken for facility upgrades without compensation or agreement, describing it as land grabbing.

“We have no agreement for that land. Our people are even saying they want their land back because there is no benefit whatsoever,” he added.

He also accused the company of environmental degradation, citing pollution from flare pits and alleged dumping of waste on community land.

“They are supposed to pay for flare activities. Our farmlands are damaged. Even the lands left for us are polluted,” Agi said.

On the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), he argued that Umu-Aye had not benefitted meaningfully, stressing that employment and contracts should not be excluded under the guise of PIA implementation.

A women leader, Mrs. Blacky Moses, lamented the loss of access to ancestral farmlands and the economic hardship faced by women in the community.

“We no longer farm freely on our land. Our crops no longer produce well because of pollution. Our children are roaming without jobs,” she said.

Mrs. Moses also linked gas flaring to health challenges among women in the community, including early menopause and eye problems.

“They should support us because we are the landlords. The women are suffering,” she added.

As of press time, TotalEnergies had not responded to the allegations. (AriseNews TV)