OGONI COUNTS BLESSINGS OF SELF-GOVERNMENT AT 5TH ANNIVERSARY
OGONI, AUGUST 2, 2017: The Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority, OCIA has reached a milestone this August, celebrating 5 years of progress of self-government.
OGONI CASSAVA PLANT AND FOOD SUPPLY DEPOT
Welcoming celebrants at the 5th Anniversary in Bori, the cultural and political capital of the Ogoni Nation, the President of Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority, Dr. Goodluck Diigbo, praised the Ogoni people working together to actualize self-government.
He counted some blessings and challenges facing the self-government, and said “we are inspired by shared efforts and our goals to ensure human and material security as well as food security in Ogoniland.”
He announced that work would begin on a cassava processing plant at the end of August 2017. Diigbo said the site of the plant will house a food supply depot.
The plant will receive raw materials from 59 cassava farms for which he announced the appointments of 59 inspectors and two week training program for the appointees.
He said the people own shares in the cassava farms and would earn income to reinvest and cater for their families.
Diigbo said “OCIA has grown and spread throughout 11 provinces, 54 districts and operating 15 institutions, training and empowerment agencies.
Diigbo hinted that the Ogoni Central District Assembly, ODCA the law-making organ for district councils and the Ogoni National Legislative Assembly, ONLA are jointly working on a resolution to set guidelines for outside investors in the Ogoni economic development initiatives.
He said OCIA has taken a new turn on how to translate our farming activities into economic empowerment ventures.
Answering a question about the impact of restructure of Nigeria on Ogoni Nation, he said Ogoni will always remain Ogoni.
Diigbo said “the Ogoni people will not participate in any attempt to restructure Nigeria that would encourage internal colonialism; set Ogoni Nation as an appendage to another ethnic group, or label Ogoni as something alien to us.”
Diigbo said “I expect that Nigeria would in due course play its role in the self-government of Ogoni within the ambit of the United Nations Declaration.”
“No one would receive our consent to label Ogoni as something other than Ogoni Nation, or impose an alien system upon us,” Diigbo asserted.
Diigbo restated that “Ogoni political Autonomy is irreversible”.
The Ogoni had declared Political Autonomy on the 2nd August 2012 to enforce the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples, which was adopted in New York on September 13, 2007.
The anniversary featured speeches, messages of solidarity, cultural performance, processional songs and dances, parade by provinces and other units of the Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority.
Tambari Deekor,
Director of Public Communications