OBAMA GETS KUDOS FROM OGONI, NIGERIA FOR SOUND JUDGMENT

While urging governments, including Nigeria to demonstrate their commitment to indigenous rights and freedoms, the Deputy President of Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority (OCIA), Hon. Mrs. Alice Nwinee said: “There is no time barrier for restoration of indigenous rights.”

Madam Nwinee said President Obama not only appreciates the long history of Native Americans, but understands that they are equal to all other Americans.

Her remarks followed Obama’s renaming of McKinley Mountain, Alaska to its original name – DENALI, which means “The Great One”.

McKinley was a well-respected former American President from Ohio, and the mountain was renamed to honor him over 100 years ago against the will of the Natives. OCIA woman leader has been speaking yesterday as part of an Ogoniwide public enlightenment tour.

On Sunday, August 30, 2015, Nwinee had kicked off the village to village “rights-train” on behalf of the President of the Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority, Dr. Goodluck Diigbo with a special launch in Bori, the Ogoni cultural and political capital.

The OCIA Deputy President said Ogoni people have become more informed, because individuals have defended the truth, and in so doing, raised awareness about environmental, economic, and political rights. She said the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples clearly backs the Ogoni Bill of Rights, which stands for political autonomy, otherwise called the Right to Self-Government.

On the implementation of the Ogoni UNEP Assessment Report, she said: “We all welcome President Buhari’s intervention, but, the priority remains a joint stakeholders’ review as the way forward. This received a standing ovation by the audience.

As the Executive Director of the Presidential Agency for Women Empowerment, PAWE she had worked for years to enlighten Ogoni people about indigenous rights, and continue to promote collaborative investment program through collectively-generated funds out of local sources for Ogoni women.

She succeeded former Deputy President, Hon. Christina Wiko who recently passed away. Wiko served in various capacities, including as Chair Ogoni Autonomy Referendum Commission, Electoral Commission for village and district elections, and Secretary General of the Federation of Ogoni Women Association, FOWA, after decades as a public school teacher.

Hon. Beabubari Ndorbu
Ogoni Springtime Media Coordinator
Contact: [email protected]