A group, Ogoni Liberation Initiative (OLI), has called for accountability for the $300 million compensation paid by Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for the development of Ogoniland.
President of OLI, Douglas Fabeke, made the demand at a special birthday party held in his honour in Port Harcourt, yesterday.
Fabeke said information available to the group showed that the money was paid to the immediate past government of Rivers State through an Out-of-Court settlement.
He stated that several letters written by the group to the former Group Managing Director (GMD) and management of NNPCL, demanding explanation on the $300 million payment, were ignored.
Fabeke stated, “But since then, we have written several letters to the former GMD, letters that were ignored. We demanded accountability.
“We demanded action. Instead of answers, we met a wall of silence. We then demanded his removal from office and he was eventually replaced.
“There is information with valid evidence confirming that $300 million had been paid to the Rivers State Government via an Out-of-Court settlement under the former administration, but the management of NNPCL has failed to brief us nor respond to our several letters.”
He, however, said the management of NNPCL recently acknowledged a demand notice from OLI’s legal team, and vowed to approach the court to recover the resources meant for the development of Ogoni people.
The group wondered why NNPCL decided to pay the money into Rivers State account instead of Ogoni people, who were directly affected by oil-polluted environment.
He stated, “On the 14th July, 2025, the NNPCL acknowledged our demand notice through our legal representative. The organisation shall embark on a legal battle, one that will shake the history of Nigeria, to recover all the resources of the Ogoni people.
“We ask, where is the 300 million dollars’ compensation? Who authorised the payment to the state government, instead of the Ogoni people, the rightful victims and stakeholders in this matter?
“Who represented the Ogoni people during the out-of-court settlement? What was that money used for? We are demanding full disclosure. We are demanding that justice be done and seen to be done.
“We will pursue this matter legally, politically, and publicly until the truth is exposed and our people are compensated accordingly.”