An advocacy group has insisted that the “Miideekor” demand of the Ogoni people must be a key condition in any agreement to resume oil production in Ogoniland, stressing that the people must have equity participation and ownership in any company commissioned for the exercise.
The position was made known during a community-led workshop and solidarity peace walk on environmental justice and planned oil production resumption in Ogoniland, organised by the Advocacy Centre in collaboration with Tech4Rural in Port Harcourt on February 26, 2026.
Speaking at the event, Environmental Justice Activist and Executive Director of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC), Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, said oil production should not resume without addressing longstanding demands of the Ogoni people as contained in the Ogoni Bill of Rights presented to the Federal Government in 1990 under the auspices of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).
He called for the full implementation of the 2011 United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Report on Ogoni, exoneration and immortalisation of the Ogoni Nine, including Ken Saro-Wiwa, and a formal apology from the Federal Government for past human rights violations.
Dr. Fyneface further demanded political inclusion for Ogoni sons and daughters, including federal cabinet appointments and support for the emergence of an Ogoni governor in Rivers State, noting that no Ogoni indigene has occupied the position since the state’s creation in 1967.
Community members at the workshop recounted the lingering impact of oil pollution. A resident of Koro Koro Tai community in Tai Local Government Area lamented that oil still seeps from the ground when wells are dug, making access to potable water difficult.
Similarly, Toby Gift from Andoni Local Government Area recalled major oil spills between 2009 and 2010 that devastated fishing activities, leaving long-term environmental residues despite surface clean-up efforts.
Also speaking, environmental advocate and Executive Director of Light Hope Initiative, Evelyn Williams, highlighted advocacy efforts that led to the clean-up of Goi community in Gokana Local Government Area, which had been severely polluted and partially abandoned due to oil contamination.
Participants at the event emphasised the need for holistic remediation, justice for affected communities, and inclusive dialogue before any oil production resumption, urging the Federal Government to adopt a development-focused rather than security-driven approach to the Ogoni issue.
