Ebonyi community demands N300 million compensation over alleged land pollution by mining company

The people of Community of Omege-Agalegu Village, Ndufu-Alike, in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, have the raised alarm over what they described as the continuous pollution of their land and water source by the company operating in the area.

The pollution of their land and water source has been ongoing for over three years as no effort has been made by the said company or State Government to reverse the ugly trend.

This development had led to poisoning of their major source of portable water, land and death of aquatic life within the environment.

In a protest letter captioned, “Re: The Devastating Effect of Your Company’s Waste Disposal on Our Land and Water Environment and Demand for Compensation” addressed to the Director, First Patriot Nigeria Ltd, Ndufu-Alike-Ikwo and signed by the Chairman and Secretary, Omege Development Union, Sunday Nwewor and Ogbonnaya Nweke, respectively, the  members of the affected Community explained how the unwholesome activities of the said company had brought untold hardship on the likelihood of the people.

But in a quick reaction, the Project Manager of First Patriot Nig. Ltd, Mr. Neelam Sada, explained that the immediate land owners where exploration work is taking place are not complaining of any ugly situation.

“Omege Community is not within our area of operation. They didn’t give us land directly and so, they are not our land owners. What they are claiming is not correct.

“Where the Community is busy writing and claiming Environmental hazard is almost 5kms away from our operations base after our host Community. Our host Community doesn’t have any complaint on any kind of effluent discharge or any damage.”

According to the Community, we have watched helplessly the destruction and devastation of our plants, animals, crops and economic livelihood, the degradation of our land and water environment caused by the waste discharged into our water through the Company’s activities of mineral exploration and exploration.

The letter further reads: “The Company through her numerous activities of improper discharge and deposition of waste into our River have destroyed our plants, economic trees, flora and other aquatic lives, thereby denying the people their fundamental right to enjoy their God-given natural resources.

“The Company should know that because of the environmental contamination of the land and water, it will take many years before the environment will be useful and productive again.

“The action of the Company is condemnable, absurd and an infringement to the Community’s fundamental right to live and utilize its natural resources.

“We, the people of the Community hereby demand an immediate compensation for the damages, pains, trauma caused us by the Company’s waste disposal into our stream. We demand a compensation of N300,000,000 million naira.

“The compensation should be within 30 working days from the day of the receipt of this letter. We demand the Company from today henceforth to stop polluting our land and water environment. We demand the company to build their own waste disposal facilities to avoid more damages to us.”

Other members of the Community who spoke said the ugly scenario include: Nweke Nworie, Uche Uguru, Ekuma Chukwudi, Monday Nwanchor, Nweke Christopher and Umanyi Rosemary.

It was learnt that the Community had engaged the legal services of E. E. Denis and Associates which has written to the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Ebonyi State, the Coordinator, NESREA, Ebonyi State Field Office as part of measures to ensure quick dispensation justice to the people of the community.