Indigenes of Opolo community of Bayelsa have called on Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) to pay an outstanding of N6,938,899,900, being amount of unpaid rentals, expired leases and re-acquisition fees.
The indigenes, who staged a protest in Abuja, yesterday, said they were being cheated by the multinational company.
Hezekiah Odede, who spoke on behalf of the community, also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in order to avoid crisis in the region.
Shell, he claimed, is paying Port Harcourt and other regions N600,000 per hectare of land, but paying Bayelsa N200,000.
“We produce oil in manifold surplus and they are still paying us N200,000 per hectare. So, we are saying enough is enough, Shell Managing Director, Osagie, and the head of lands are using our money to do other things.
“In Niger Delta, particularly in Opolo community, we didn’t stop any work any day but we just want the government to know that the rig is in Opolo community land where they are drilling. If they don’t pay us our balance, we will go there to stop them with our youths.
“We just want Nigerians and the government to know we are not violent but Shell always make us to be violent.
“When we leave here without any resolution, we will go there and stop the operation.
“In 2017, the National Assembly, passed a verdict that Shell should pay us. The National Assembly passed a resolution for them to pay this money, till now, they refused,” he said.