Ijaw youths give ExxonMobil seven days to clean up ‘oil spill’ in Akwa Ibom

The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has given ExxonMobil, the American multinational oil and gas corporation, seven days to clean up an alleged oil spill in Akwa Ibom state.

Over 25 coastal communities in Ibeno LGA of the south-south state are said to have been affected by the oil spill that occurred last Thursday.

In a statement on Tuesday, Alaye Theophilus, IYC president, said ExxonMobil should clean up the area and compensate victims within seven days.

“In response to the recent devastating event of the oil spill in Ibeno community, Akwa Ibom state which is just one of such occurrences, we are hereby calling on ExxonMobil to as a matter of urgency carry out a thorough clean up exercise and initiate a procedure for compensation in the affected areas,” the statement reads.

The council said communities in the Niger Delta have suffered “repeated oil spills and other accidents that leave significant pollution and degradation to their host communities”.

It called on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and other relevant authorities to prevail on ExxonMobil to “act swiftly” by cleaning up the affected communities.

“We are giving them seven days to take responsibility and swing into full and immediate action regarding the massive spill that was realized in the Ibeno community on the 16th of August 2024 whose effect on aqua life within the area is already very severe,” the statement adds.

“In our pursuit of a clean, habitable and favourable environment within all Ijaw territories, we want to state categorically that we will no longer treat with leniency any act of negligence and hesitancy of IOCs with regards to environmental related issues as this critical challenge has posed a severe danger to the lives and economic activities of our people.

“We also wish to state that any form of negligence, delay or foul play will not be taken lightly as this is not going to be business as usual.”