Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, Has Sued For Continuous Peace And Mutually Beneficial Relationship Between Sterling Petrochemical And Fertilizer Limited-spfl, And Its Host Community Of Eastern Obolo, To Secure The Economic Advantage Of The Multinational For The State, While Also Protecting The Interest Of Citizens In The Community.
The Governor Gave The Charge While Undertaking An On-the-spot Inspection Of Construction Site For The Company’s Operation And The Surrounding Communities, As He Takes Steps To Ensure Lasting Solution To The Lingering Crisis Between Some Communities In The Area And The Spfl Over Creek Settlements.
Commending The Peace That Has So Far Been Maintained In The Company-community Relationship, The Governor Admonished That The Citing Of The Multinational Company Has Great Benefit For Eastern Obolo People, Akwa Ibom State, And The Entire Nation, Describing The Few Traces Of Friction Between The Two Parties As Expected.
The Akwa Ibom State Governor Therefore Directed That A Committee Having Representations From The Community, The Company, the State Government And The Security Agencies Be Constituted With A Mandate To Ensure Holistic Environmental Impact Assessment, EIA, To Ascertain The Immediate And Long-term Term Impact Of Operations Of The Spfl On The Eastern Obolo Communities.
He Also Directed The State Surveyor General To Undertake An Immediate And Thorough Survey Of The Area Operated By Sterling Petrochemicals And Fertilizer Limited With A View To Demarcating The Actual Operational Area By The Company And Inventing Measures That Will Ensure The Safety And Preservation Of Adjoining Communities, Stressing The Need To Balance The Profitability Of The Investment And Avoiding Unnecessary Hazards On The People.
According To Him, The Committee, Which Is To Be Inaugurated In A Week’s Time Will Be Saddled With The Responsibility Of Mediating Between The Company, The Community And Government, To Establish A Proper Plan For Environmental Impact Analysis For The Project And Look Into The Issues Of Location And Closure Of The Creeks, Particularly As It Affects The Obianga And Ikonta Communities And Also To Discuss Appointment Of A Community Relations Manager And Other Matters Towards Finding Permanent Solutions That Will Be Accepted By All.
Governor Eno Further Affirming Eastern Obolo Local Government Area As A Beneficiary Of The First Round Of The One Project Per Local Government Area, Reassured The People Of More Inclusiveness In His Administration’s Arise Agenda.
Earlier, The Member Representing Eastern Obolo In The State House Of Assembly, Selina Ukpatu, Had Described Governor Umo Eno’s Intervention As Laudable And A Demonstration Of His Fatherly Disposition In The State, Assuring Of The Cooperation Of The People Of The Area With The State Government’s Plan To Resolve The Issues To The Benefit Of All.
The Local Government Chairman, Samuel Nteogwuijah, In His Address At The Event, Expressed The Profound Gratitude Of The People And Leaders Of Eastern Obolo Over The Governor’s Compassionate And Listening Leadership And His Ingenuity In Taking The Bold Step To Ensure Lasting Peace By Decisively Resolving The Spfl Community Relations Issues.
On His Part, The Managing Director, of SPFL, Mohit Barot, Said The SPFL has Been In Nigeria For About 20 Years, Adding That The Choice Of Akwa Ibom For One Of Their Biggest Operational Bases In The Country Was Due To The Peaceful And Enabling Environment In The State, And Assured That They Were Ready To Abide By The Directives Of The State Government And To Improve, Where Necessary, Their Community Relations.