by
Sampson Iroabuchi Onwuka
Bloomberg News and Information, British Broadcasting Cooperation, all reported on 26th of June 2009 of the attack on Shell property in Niger-Delta region in Nigeria. The usual caption was set in such a way as to suggest that something was going all over the place, that there was a serious case of unrest in Nigerian Niger-Delta region. The picture which the world is compelled to see as reflective of youth violence, especially young black youths carrying guns and machete, seem to be the only picture entirely available for the general public.
Enough cannot be said about the activity of the Nigerian oil companies. Hydro Carbons are found in the area Block OML 64 and 66 and Nigerian NNPC is been busy signing papers with a lot companies. In October 2004, deep-water block OPL 222 was auctioned on and appraised. Production is set to begin in 2010 and is expected to co-inside with 20% Chevron participation, 30% ExxonMobil, Nexen Petro will participate at 20% range.
We know that China reached a trade agreement with Nigeria that will lead Nigeria to offload 30, 000 bbl/d of crude oil in next recurring five years. NNPC has also engineered a 4 billion contract development of the so-called Agbami field of Niger Delta. Why any of these companies and deals are not derailed or forced to generate uncertainty in the area, why they do not make the news as usual and why it is only Shell that always speak of these attack seem to baffle the minds of the world.
For many years, there has been no singular evidence of a 'Shell on fire', there is not evidence of the so-called kidnap except for the scattered issue concerning a man who had refused to go. There are matters arising out of the area in terms of kidnap and these actions seem to have given some weight to the report of such incident in the whole of the region. Yet proper journalism which most Nigerians and in deed the world truly miss about Niger-Delta, would tend to question the staying power of the friction arising from this whole incident of Delta clashes.
The journalism concerning this Niger-Delta is seriously spurious, full of conceivable scenario which exacerbated by pictures of Hooliganism. These pictures burrow deep into the mind of outsiders suggesting a mass of social unrest in whole Nigeria with reflective mutiny of displaced hooligans desperate to harm White people.
We lack the Kaleidoscope of the whole agrarian area of the so called Niger-Delta, but this area is large and elaborate enough to mute the issue of rebellious few, rather it is getting muted by these groups through the lens of the journalist who are adding fiction to fact. We cannot pretend that such unrest in the area does not exist, that it exist means that it has a degree of accuracy, to the degree that it now exist in the eyes of the world as only a keel from the Journalist (reportage) who are widening the angel of the story.
No reporter pursue any story without evidence, and no self respecting individual accept these stories when travels beyond reasonable doubt. What is the truth in placing such a high emphasis on an incident in an Oil Refinery in Nigeria called Shell, when other oil companies owned by Americans are hardly scratched. The relationship between Shell and BBC is not entirely clear and how they manage to get these information is also not clear.
What we do know is that much of the reporting that exist on paper and online concerning this Niger-Delta is initially brokered to the public by very BBC. How can we suggest that the Journalism involved in this crisis has done more harm than good when the only way this incident has reached our ears had been through the same source. It is incumbent upon us and the world to seek out the true facts about Niger-Delta, to elaborate the whole issue and geography concerning the area and exact particulars of the area in the whole region of Niger Delta that the incident took place. Accountable is the motive in this whole Saga.
Are these not the days of Google Earth, Global Crossing and MapQuest? are these not the days of GPS (Global Position Station)? how come that these technology that exist in Nigeria and are used by BBC are not implored to get absolute pictures of the damages to freaking Shell facility and probable location of the incident.
Such attention is necessary since Nigeria and her OPEC friends would like to demonstrate that oil drilling countries are reliable for output. This will also indicate the interest about Nigeria whose 20% GDP is Crude oil, 95% foreign flotation is crude oil, and crude oil also command the 65% budgetary revenues are more than likely to agitate when the crude oil is interrupted.
Perhaps it was Ken Saro Wiwa who began to expose the issue of environmental disaster facing the Niger-Delta and began to use his tactics of armed resistance against Nigerian military seeking to make foolish his complain of Environmental rape. In the end, it was his death that brought the attention of the world to bear in that Niger Delta.
What the world didn't forget was the whole issue of civil disturbance in that area, but in torchlight of reporters, a new world of thinking and attitude towards the Villagers spurred. That new attitude serve as the basis of the conflict, it is not entirely a mistaken to suggest that the idea has turned out worse than imagined. In effect, what began as a fact in real life circumstance yield now some serious hint of fiction.
From the beginning of OPEC until now, civil disturbance in oil rich sections of OPEC countries had been a way to affect the price of crude in real time. From the Arab - Israeli war of 1973 that saw price rise from $2.10 a barrel in 1971 till many times the price, to the disturbance arising from the fall of Shah in 1979 which saw crude oil crack $13 a barrel, to the civil unrest in early 80's which led to the a barrel of oil at $34 a barrel.
The world of oil which Shell played a significant hand, had always been dogged by unrest and uncertainty which affect crude prices arising from such volatility.
It is no wonder that Nigeria which needed improvement of her infrastructure in terms of Refinery and output signed unfortunate deals with Shell and company in the late 70's, and the deal was constantly revised under military dictatorship in 80's, that in 1982 when there was problem with the rise and fall of that Crude by way of Britain willing to offer 8 dollars a barrel, sabotaging in the process the high dependency of Crude.
From Asset pricing and Debt repay position this was a deliberate attempt to force third world economies like Nigeria and Indonesia, countries relying on Shell and Company to build refineries for them in reverse into owing these British companies. Now the substantial preemie of return, which Nigeria would have anticipated from oil now fall in with new bills from these refineries as assets in recessions.
The facts remain that the prices were jetting of so fast in the world and from that volume and output, small third world countries like Nigeria, Mexico and Indonesia, fell into deep National debt with new constructed Refineries in their countries. With the fall of oil prices, the debts increased weakening in the process the fundamental structure and nature of the countries currency and unit of exchange.
In essence, the delay of debt repay for building these Refineries was set in order of 'continuous time' model on the condition that if it goes bad (that is, if risk of repay compounds; defaults), the currency of host Nation will redeem itself in terms of higher averages or equivalent on claims to uncertain payment. Why Nigeria became indebted to IMF was due to poverty of the country to maintain its payment. The debt compounded quickly leading to redemption of Nigerian debt by Saudi Arabia in 1982 by up to a billion dollar.
To repay arising from crude oil bust, more and more output was required, and more and more areas were cleared in Niger - Delta and more pipes were laid and more Refineries drilled from Nigerian Agrarian Niger - Delta. The result was a huge destruction of the environment, a consistent rape of the place where fishes came to nest and a presence of toxic materials in the water and around the region of Shell rig-zone. More than Shell, there were others whose home were displaced leading to an initial arms resistance and then a thaw of the relation.
If we say that a country like Nigeria need oil, we are suggesting that the dark psychology of quick kill in energy market has proven inevitable. The staying power of inevitability of high energy demand in a country with so much poverty cannot be denied, but how that investment in that part of the Niger Delta and business world seem to indicate a crisis allover the country and all over Niger Delta, seem a question we cannot answer.
What the article is indicating is that facts concerning incidents of the Niger Delta ought to be made auspiciously clear with evidence of attack on say a Shell facility, this should be done in order to avoid cracks into the story in the future. What we are also saying is that from such cracks there will speculations, there will be misunderstanding or misinformation, and 'there will be blood'. When blood spill other than oil, there are no degrees of inevitability and fiction ipso facto.
Nigeria is an oil rich country and her hopes for its citizens now and in the years to come seem to be the primary reason of its existence. What is therefore considered faithful to the survival of the country, for instance oil, should get more than adequate commission from the federal government of Nigeria. Given the sensitive nature of such News of the crisis of Niger Delta, it needs be backed by several third party.
According World facts book/Nigeria, the amount of oil these companies lift from Nigeria is not known. In essence, the fiction concerning Niger Delta is so troubling since the actual use of the information does not translate into real life circumstances.
If the Nigeria has wasted 40 Billion dollars from Niger Delta Crisis, it meets that so far the Nigerian government has failed, should this however continue with the rebel tendency, the price of such future failure upon the very fragile Nigerian Union, cannot be greater.
by Iroabuchi Onwuka
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