President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has honoured four slain Ogoni leaders with national awards, more than three decades after their deaths, in a gesture aimed at healing old wounds and strengthening peace in the Niger Delta.
On Wednesday at the Presidential Villa, Tinubu announced the conferment of the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) on Albert Badey, Edward Kobani, Theophilus Orage, and Samuel Orage—who were killed in 1994 during violent communal unrest in Giokoo, Rivers State. They are collectively remembered as the “Ogoni Four.”
The president used the occasion to call for unity and reconciliation in Ogoniland, stressing that their sacrifice must inspire collective strength and progress. “I urge the Ogoni people, across all divides, to close ranks, heal from this painful history and chart a common course as one people,” he said.
Tinubu also instructed the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to lead efforts to restore peace and stability in the Niger Delta while assuring that his administration would prioritise environmental cleanup, economic development, and the resumption of oil exploration in Ogoniland.
He reminded stakeholders that the previous government had handed operatorship of the Ogoni oil field to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and its partners in 2022, adding that his administration would follow through by engaging local communities and finalising arrangements to restart oil production.
The Minister of Environment was directed to integrate remediation of polluted areas into the wider dialogue with residents.
Presenting the committee’s report earlier, NSA Ribadu explained that consultations had included all four Ogoni zones and diaspora representatives.
The key demands, he said, centred on structured involvement of Ogonis in oil operations, accelerated environmental restoration, and guarantees of long-term development.
Dialogue Committee Chair, Prof. Don Baridam, said the recommendations reflected the consensus of the Ogoni people and could serve as a framework for implementation by government agencies.
Ribadu reassured Nigerians that Tinubu’s directives would be executed fully. “Peace is already returning to Ogoniland. Soon, the benefits will be evident not just here but across the Niger Delta,” he said.
Oil operations in Ogoniland have remained shut since 1993, when protests against ecological damage led to unrest and later the execution of writer-activist Ken Saro-Wiwa alongside eight colleagues in 1995.
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