Youths of the Rumuekpe community in Emuoha Local Government Area of Rivers State, have issued a 14-day ultimatum to Aradel Holdings Plc, demanding employment opportunities and provision of social amenities or risk a total shutdown of its operations.
The threat by the youths is coming at the height of political tension in the state which has resulted to the suspension of democratic governance institutions in the state.
Youth leader of the community, Comrade Ovundah Umeka, in an interview said the people are running out of patience, accusing the company of ignoring the youths despite the continued extraction of resources from their land.
He said: “Aradel has been operating on our river for years, yet there is no employment for Rumuekpe youths. We don’t have good roads, no clean water, nothing.
“We have pleaded with them because we don’t want any crisis, but they have refused to listen. Our youths are now bent on protesting.”
Umeka further accused Aradel of failing to recognize Rumuekpe as its host community, despite having a booster station in the area where it receives crude oil.
“We are giving them 14 days from today. If they refuse to heed our demands, we will block the Sombriero River so their vessels cannot pass. It will be a peaceful demonstration, but we are ready to let the whole world know our suffering.
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“If they want to come and kill us, let them come. It’s either they employ our people like they employ people from other communities, or they kill us,” the youth leader declared.
Umeka lamented the environmental degradation caused by Aradel’s oil exploration operations, accusing the company of polluting their river, which serves as a source of drinking water and fishing for the community.
“The river is between Ekpeye and Rumuekpe; we drink from it, we fish from it, but crude oil has contaminated it. We asked Aradel to dredge the river, but they refused. We even sent letters to their head office in Lagos, but they ignored us,” the youth leader said.
Also speaking, the Public Relations Officer of the Rumuekpe Youths Forum, Emmanuel Ovunze, said despite three years of operations, Aradel has failed to employ a single youth or award contracts to community members.
“We are not violent, but we are using this channel to call Aradel to order. Rumuekpe youths need to be carried along.
“We need clean drinking water, electricity, and a road. Our people are dying—no hospitals, no jobs, nothing. The company must listen to us,” Ovunze stressed.
Efforts to reach the Community Relations Manager of Aradel were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
