COASTAL SHORELINE COMMUNITIES AND INDIVIDUAL VICTIMS VERSION OF THE 20TH DEC.2011 BONGA OIL SPILL.
Representatives and leaders of the shoreline Communities and individuals directly impacted by the spill in their own version maintained that the Shell group failed to give a fair and accurate account of the circumstances in which the Spill occurred and the related pollution and events which occurred thereafter.
They stuck to their position that the Shell group was negligent in and about the loading of the cargo of crude oil from FPSO to MV “Northia” as well as in and about the subsequent attempts to prevent the spill and to contain and deal with it.
The impacted shoreline communities further accused the Shell group of making limited admission in relation to the December 2011 spill but that they sought to play down the extent and seriousness of this spillage instead, they sought to cast the blame for the pollution and loss and damage suffered by the communities and individuals impacted on what they concocted and claim was a further spill by an unknown third party on or about 24th December 2011, for which they have no liability (“Mystery spill”).
However regardless of the initial cause of the problem, the representatives of the impacted communities have established that the leak from this rupture persisted for no less than 6 hours in circumstances where the Shell group were aware of the spill, or aware of the high likelihood that there was spillage, because of the differentials between the FPSO figures, and the MV Northia figures, that the Shell group acted negligently and recklessly in disregard of usual procedures and applicable regulations and guidelines.
The version of shoreline communities continues.
This series is from the stable of the oil spills victims vanguard a non- governmental organization(NGO) incorporated with the corporate affairs commission OSPIVV is an initiative whose main object is dedicated to fight for compensation for victims of oil spill, health hazards of gas flaring, transparency and accountability in the extractive industries in Nigeria.
HARRISON JALLA is an Executive Director (OSPIVV)