| Women take to the street over oil
By JOE EFFIONG, Uyo
Wednesday, September 7, 2005
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Photo : Sun News Publishing
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In 1929, there was a riot in Aba and Ikot Abasi. The bone of contention was palm oil. Now, it is brewing again in Eket, the oil capital of Akwa Ibom State.
As in the 20’s, the issue is still oil. But this time, what may turn out to be Eket women riot is about crude oil.
Yes. Crude oil is what is at stake and it has caused thousands of women from the oil producing local government areas of Akwa Ibom State to abandon their domestic and other official duties that fateful Thursday to stage a peacefu protest.
Led by Obonganwan Grace Ekanem, who goes by the name Obonganwan-General of Eket, the women poured into streets of Eket, Ibeno, Onna, Esit Eket and Nsit Ubuim Local Government areas, chanting war songs and displaying placards denouncing the confab’s position and insisting on 50 percent revenue allocation to oil producing states or nothing.
“Today is an historic day in the lives of women of Akwa Ibom State because we have decided to break our silence on our suffering and let the world know what we have been passing through right from the 50’s when oil was discovered through the 60’s when we were opportuned to experience the effects of oil exploration and exploitation activities.
“We have been subjected to double dose of suffering from the effects of the oil exploration activities on our husbands, fathers and children. It is known world-wide that 80 percent of the women in Sub-Saharan Africa are engaged in subsistence farming and we, our livelihood is not different. Besides, the Niger Delta region has blessed us with luxuriant vegetation, rich cache of animals, majestic and graceful expanse of rivers, seas and streams. The swamps forest continues to feed us and thus provides the sources of our livelihoods and strengths in home engineering”.
No longer at ease
Their spokeswoman, Princess Ini Adiakpan, said apart from depleting their rare flora and fauna thus endangering lives of men who brave the violent wave to engage in deep-sea fishing, they said oil exploration had also left most of their youths unemployed because they could not afford to buy fishing nets to continue their traditional occupation. Thus foreigners have now taken over fishing in their waters.
Worse still, the enraged women said they have now been rendered incapable of performing their traditional duties of providing food for their families since their farmlands have been rid of nutrients, making agriculture a fruitless venture.
Visitors infect our daughters
“Our daughters are exploited and our youths exposed to HIV/AIDS scourge because of high influx of visitors. The cost of living is high and we cannot afford to feed our families well. The effect has been devastating on the people’s psyche and has thrown them into abject poverty, conflicts and crimes. Thus withholding the implementation of resource control based on the principle of 50 percent derivation is immoral, injustice, suicidal to a people. And tantamounts to unleashing a psychological genocide on the people. It is robbing Peter to pay Paul and, indeed, negates the principles of democracy and federalism, which we profess to practice. In all these, it is the women who suffer most because they are the ones who keep the ‘home’s fire burning’ while the rest are away.”
No retreat, no surrender
The women said since a precedent had been set by the 1960 –1963 constitution which promoted resource control principle with regions controlling 50 percent of the revenue derived from their resources, they wanted 50 percent or nothing for oil producing zones now.
“The above mentioned constitution made the continental shelf part of the regions and the resources found thereof. Besides, it did not use the discriminatory word onshore offshore as a ploy to deprive people of their God-given heritage. As such, this dichotomy should be dropped. Man-made boundaries do not stop the effects of pollution and high cost of living and their attendant effects. As such, double standard should be dropped and continental shelf be made part of the adjoining states for the possible alleviation of their suffering. Women should be allocated 30 percent of the oil blocs as a means of empowerment”.
The 1929 Aba / Ikot Abasi women riot over oil ended in a tragic note with dozens of women gunned down on the order of the colonial masters who wanted full control of the oil. Now, will 2005 Akwa Ibom women riot over crude oil end peacefully with all the parties satisfied or in tragedy? The women say this time no retreat, no surrender.
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