Oil Crisis: Between Landowners and the Community

Governor Ikedi Ohakim of Imo State

The discovery of oil in a farm in Imo State precipitates a crisis in Okworji, Oru East LGA
By Eugenia Okpara, Owerri
One of the dangerous effects of the presence of crude oil in Nigeria is that it has set brothers at each other’s throat. People are now ready to undo their relations just to deprive them of the oil money, so to speak.
This was the scenario in Okworji, Ofekata 111 autonomous comm-unity in Oru East local government area that culminated in Elder Linus Izuka losing his house to rampaging youths. The sin committed by the over 70 year-old man is that crude oil was found in his farmland of over 65 years. The youths, The Source was informed, were instigated by the president general of the town union, Fidelis Anozie.
The embattled homeless Elder Izuka narrating his ordeal to The Source said that, around August 2007, an oil prospecting company, Addax Petroleum Development Nigeria Limited, came to Ofekata 111 autonomous community for oil exploration.
According to him, crude oil was discovered in commercial quantity in Okworji area of the community. He said that he was not aware of the activities of the oil company, let alone that oil was found in Okworji. Elder Izuka disclosed that he became aware of the presence of the company in the community when his traditional ruler, Eze Polycarp Abanukam, summoned the whole community to his palace.
He explained that Eze Abanukam had to call the whole community because he does not know those whose farmlands were affected. Elder Izuka revealed that Eze Abanukam had earlier told Addax Petroleum that he has not been to that area since he was born, hence he invited the whole people. So, the whole community went to the area, but Addax insisted that they would discuss with those whose lands fell within the mapped area.
Izuka revealed that trouble started when he Eze Abanukam told the whole community that the company would deal directly with landowners though the community, the traditional ruler, the youths, and the local government council would be “settled”. The community was also told that at the appropriate time the company will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the 17 landowners.
This decision did not go down well with some members of the community allegedly led by Chief Fidelis Anozie. The arrowheads, Chief Augustine Onyedebele, Chief Fidelis Anozie, Boniface Chinagu, Goddy Efugha, an engineer and the former youth leader, became envious and allegedly vowed to ensure that it became a community affair. It was at this juncture that the president-general of the town union, Chief Fidelis Anozie, and his colleagues started mobilising against the landowners, Izuka alleged. With the alleged tacit support of Eze Abanukam, Chief Anozie and his cohorts went to Addax and claimed that the land is community land.
But when the 17 landowners, Elder Izuka explained, went to the traditional ruler to ascertain the reason behind the sudden somersault, after Addax’s Public Relation Officer (PRO) informed them about the clandestine moves, the ruler denied the allegation. The 17 landowners then requested that he summon the whole community to enable them iron out the matter with the people.
Regrettably, Izuka disclosed, Eze Abanukam did not summon the community as the landowners requested. On the fourth occasion they went to him, he said that the landowners should go to Owerri and settle the matter with Addax. Izuka lamented that if the traditional ruler had called the people, the problem would not have escalated to the extent of torching his house.
According to the embittered man, while the landowners were trying to find a solution to the problem, Chief Anozie was busy mobilising youths and some other members of the community against the 17 landowners. When the pressure became too much, 12 landowners out of the 17 “chickened out,” leaving only five of us to continue the struggle.
On April 13, 2008, due to Izuka's determination not to surrender his father’s land to the community, youths carrying placards stormed his house and damaged the doors and windows. According to him, their placards had such inscriptions as “Choose between AK 47 and one million naira,” “Choose between surrendering the land to the community and facing AK 47”.
Izuka explained that he told the youths that he would not surrender his father’s land that he has been farming on for the past 65 years without any challenge. He said that he asked the rampaging youths if it was because oil was found in the land that made it community land. They could not answer the question but insisted that he must endorse an already prepared document that ceded 80 percent of any compensation to the community, leaving only 20 percent to each of the landowners.
He expantiated further that before he signed the already prepared document, he requested to know why he must be compelled to cede 80 percent to the community. They could not also answer the question but said that all the landowners should be designated as occupiers. And he told them categorically that he would not answer “occupier” because his father did not tell him that they are strangers in Okworji, Ofekata 111.
Izuka also informed The Source that when he tried to leave his house, the youths pushed him back and insisted that he sign the document or they would kill him. So, he had to sign but told them that he was signing it under duress and that he would answer landlord even if they take 80 percent. They maintained that they would not call him landlord. So he had to, in conjunction with the other landowners, sue the community.
Izuka: “They forced me to sign the document with the person that represented the other landlords, who is late now. Although I signed the document, I told them that there is a difference between answering ‘occupier’ and ‘landowner’ when they said that it is same thing. The president general and his group had earlier stated categorically that if I did not sign the document to allow the community take 80 percent that I will be killed with my son, Emeka. Then, they will know where we will be to talk about oil”.
Continuing, he revealed that after he filed the court summons, on May 13, 2008, four arrowheads, Ferdinand Udogwu, Amarachi Ogbonna, Anayo Obiuba and Benjamin Obiuba, allegedly mobilised more youths. The youths again stormed his house and warned him that he should withdraw the case from court within seven days.
Then, on Sunday May 18, 2008, as he was going to church, the former youth leader, Jude Uzoejinwa, in the company of some other youths, accosted him and repeated the earlier threat of killing him if he did not withdraw the court case. But this time around, the youth leader said that it was the community that mandated them to inform him that if he did not withdraw that case from court, that they would kill him and his family, burn his house. He said that he asked them who sent them and they said it was Chief Augustine Onyedebele and Chief Fidelis Anozie and some of the chiefs.
According to him, they proceeded to where his son, Emeka, was holding a meeting with other executives of the youths and attacked him with the intension of killing him. Fortunately, the young man was saved by his colleagues, who rallied round him during the attack, he explained.
Elder Izuka added that when the invaders realised that they had been overpowered, they left. However, as a parting gift, they told Emeka that they were going to his father’s house to “finish” him.As soon as, they left, Emeka called him to alert him about the impending disaster and insisted that all members of the family leave the house immediately.
Izuka lamented: “Before Emeka went to that meeting, I warned him not to attend because I was reliably informed that Jude Uzoejinwa, the former youth leader had instructed his followers to carry out the operation on that Sunday. He also assured them that nothing would happen to them as Fidelis Anozie and his cohorts would always protect them. I had to leave immediately and that same day, my house was burnt to ashes in the night. The next day, I went to police and reported the matter.”
On Monday May 19, 2008, he said, he reported the torching of his house to the Commissioner of Police (CP), Imo State Police Command. He informed the CP that Chief Augustine Onyedebele, Fidelis Anozie, Boniface Chinagu, Goddy Efugha, and Jude Uzoejinwa instigated and conspired with 14 youths from his village to burn his house. He told the CP also that a house that took him over 30 years to erect was razed because Addax Oil discovered oil in his farm and were likely to pay him compensation.
He alleged that while he was at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Imo State Police Command, Chief Augustine Onyedebele and Chief Fidelis Anozie, the two instigators, were busy trying to bribe the entire youths of Ofekata 111. The aim of the lobbying was to ensure that the youths collectively intimidate the landowners to surrender. When they could not succeed, they came to State CID to make “frivolous allegations” against Emeka, Izuka further alleged.
But before Anozie and Onyedebele could lodge their report, Izuka informed the Investigation Police Officer (IPO) that they were the two people that instigated the youths to burn his house. They were arrested but granted bail to enable them bring the other culprits. Unfortunately, they ran away and decided to take the matter to Zone 9, Umuahia, and Force Headquarters, Abuja. Izuka said that they alleged that he deliberately torched his house in order to attract compensation from Addax Petroleum.
Regarding what the traditional ruler did in order to halt the deteriorating events, Izuka said that he did not do anything to stop the youths. It was after he had reported the matter to the Imo State Police Command that the traditional ruler came to the police.
“Regrettably, since these latest developments, Eze Polycarp Abanukam has not said anything even after I informed him about the threats by those youths. Since he refused to do anything, I had no option than to go court to revoke the document that I signed under duress. Ironically, when Eze Polycarp came to the police, he confessed that I have been farming on that land for over 27 years but he could not respond when he was asked why the land suddenly became community land”.
Meanwhile, Elder Izuka has petitioned the Inspector -General of Police (IGP) to inform him about the continuous threat to his life and that of his family. Also he told the IGP how his kinsmen, Chief Augustine Onyedebele, Fidelis Anozie, Boniface Chinagu, Goddy Efugha and Jude Uzoejinwa, conspired and instigated 14 youths to burn his house.
In the letter dated June 9, 2008, addressed to the IGP, captioned “Arson at Awo-omamma, Oru East local government area, Imo State” and copied to AIG Zone 9, Umuahia, Abia State, CP Imo State, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Imo State, and the press, and signed by himself and his two sons, Izuka revealed that his house was burnt because Addax Petroleum Development Nigeria Limited found crude oil in his farmland.
The letter stated that he, Izuka, conceded 80 percent to the community leaving only 20 percent for himself. But that concession did not satisfy them as they insisted that he should accept that he is an occupier and land farmer rather than a landowner. Thereafter, he instituted a court case against the community and the alleged culprits gave him seven days ultimatum to withdraw the matter.
It was after the expiration of the seven days, the letter also stated that they burnt his house with everything inside it, including his children’s certificates. Unfort-unately, he lamented, they have turned around to accuse him of torching his house in order to attract compensation from Addax. “Is it possible that a man it took 30 years to build a house even if it is a hut, can burn it down to attract compensation from an oil company prospecting in a farmland that is 20 miles away? Why has Chief Augustine Onyedebele not reported himself to the Commissioner of Police, Imo State to state his own side but chose to go to Umuahia and Abuja?”
When the Media Relations Co-ordinator of Addax Petroleum Development (Nigeria) Limited, Mike Honren Owhoko, was contacted on his mobile telephone he feigned ignorance of the problem and said that he did not understand what The Source was talking about. This was after listening to a question on whether the company is aware of the problem.
But an impeccable source close to the company told The Source that the company decided to put the Okworji, Awo-Omamma oil location on hold because of the conflict between the landowners and the community.
The source further stressed that Addax cannot fully operate on the said land until the issue of land ownership is resolved and the company is able to conclusively negotiate and sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the real landowners.
When the Imo State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, Linus Nwaiwu, was contacted to confirm if there was any report of arson from Oru East local government area he said that he has no brief on the matter.