A coalition of civil society organisations has protested against the activities of multinational oil company, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in the Niger Delta area.
The coalition, led by the Africa Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), headed by Reverend David Ugolor, staged the protest at the Lagos Corporate Headquarters of Shell carrying placards with different inscriptions such as We Demand A Just Energy Transaction and We Say No To Carbon Emissions, among others.
Highlighting the purpose of the protest, the group lamented the level of pollution, poverty and agony the activities of Shell’s and other oil giants had subjected Nigerians to, especially in the host communities and demanded an immediate end to what they described as the perennial inhuman activities of the International Oil Companies (IOCs) in the Niger Delta.
“We call on the Church of England and other financiers of Shell to withdraw their financial and moral support, having known that Shell had not respected the global warming agreement, neither had the company aligned its strategy with the Paris Climate Agreement and Glasgow 2021 commitment for net-zero.
“We are calling on the Church of England and other financiers of Shell to completely withdraw their moral and financial support to Shell, a major fossil fuel extracting company, whose operations in Nigeria’s Niger Delta have contributed to carbon emissions, environmental degradation, destruction of livelihoods and other human rights violations.
Read Also: Minister awarded Sports Personality of the Year
“Last year, ANEEJ brought together 40 West African Non – Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in a letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Reverend Justin Welby, asking the Church of England Pension Board, and by extension, other investors to desist from lending its moral and financial authority to Shell and voting for Shell’s climate and energy plan, but the letter was ignored.
“Few days after Shell’s last Annual General Meeting (AGM), the company faced two major challenges to its energy transitions strategy from official institutions. First, the International Energy Agency (IEA) concluded that no new oil and gas fields should be approved for development after 2021, if the world is to reach its agreed netzero emissions target of 2050,” the coalition stated.
Shortly afterwards, a Dutch Court ruled that Shell must cut its carbon emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 with immediate effect. The judgment found that the Church of England applauded Shell for the same policies. “Shell is causing a danger to peoples’ right to life. Shell bosses are not accountable,” the group said.
