From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
The Executive Director of Network for Defence of Democracy and Good Governance (NDDGG), Sobomabo Jackrich, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari, to exonerate the late environmental rights activist and social crusader, Ken Saro-Wiwa and his fellow Ogoni compatriots, of alleged criminal charges which led to their judicial murder by former military dictator, late General Sani Abacha, after being sentenced by a Kangaroo Tribunal.
Jackrich, who also wants Saro-Wiwa and others immortalized, made the call to mark the 27th anniversary of the Ogoni martyrs in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, yesterday.
He urged President Buhari to hearken to the voice of reason and clear the names of the Ogoni martyrs from the blemish as one of the legacies of his administration.
He noted that the killing of Saro-Wiwa and other eight Ogoni activists was not justifiable, as they were not given the opportunity of fair hearing in a normal court of justice.
Jackrich also pointed out that 27th years after the killing of the Ogoni activists, Ogoni people had remained endangered species as the issues of environmental justice and economic emancipation of Ogoni which they advocated, was yet to be addressed.
“I stand with the families of Ogoni Nine and the Ogoni Four (aka Ogoni 13) together with thousands of other Ogoni martyrs, who paid the supreme price in the days of the struggle to restore our hope.
“They paid the supreme price for social, economic and environmental emancipation of Ogoniland, Niger Delta, Nigeria and Africa.
“The struggle is a continuous one. No change has been made or achieved in Ogoni over the agitation. We are always there to support any group or ethnic nationality that is pro-democracy.
He reiterated the call on President Buhari to expedite action on the remediation of the polluted Ogoni environment and implement the recommendations of the United Nations Environmental Project (UNEP) report in Ogoni.