Efio-Ita Nyok|1 August
The Chairman, Board of Trustees of Non Governmental Organisation Coalition for Environment (NGOCE), a leading NGO in Cross River State that has interest in the preservation of the environment, Chief (Dr) Odigha Odigha, last week through his organisation's social media mouthpiece 'Ngoce' has listed four conditions the state government must meet for him to reconsider his activism against a component —240 km dual carriage Superhighway, of Governor Ben Ayade's ill-fated pet project, Signature Projects.
In Chief Odigha's words, 'I am in support of the Superhighway only if the following is adhered to by the State government'. And he proceeded in listing the quadrupled conditions thus:
'1. Withdraw the revocation of the 20 km wide strip of land through Cross River State.
2. Immediately stop bulldozing until a comprehensive, transparent & participatory EIA has been carried out.
3. Carry out extensive consultation with all stakeholders on the proposed project.
4. Offer significant compensation to all individuals & affected communities'.
Meanwhile, Chief Odigha has also confessed that contrary to the assertion credited to Gov Ayade through his Chief Press Secretary, Christian Ita, that the arrest of Chief Odigha by the Police was not politically motivated especially from his office but as a result of the allegations of financial corrupt practices leveled against him in his tenure as the head of the Cross River State Forestry Commission, that 'My arrest & detention was politically motivated, and would respond in due time'.
According to NGOCE last week,' Over 185 communities within the affected land corridor are now landless and government can move the entire communities off its ancestral lands at any time. The total area of landmass seized by the State government amounts to 5,200 square Km, or about 25% of the State's total area. The EIA (Environmental Impact Accessment) Act of 1992 states that no land clearing should be done without an EIA permit from the Federal Government. The government started clearing the forests from Bakkasi, Boki, Akamkpa, Obubra, Ikom & Etung in February 2016 without any such permits'.
Efio-Ita Nyok
Is a Blogger & the Editor of Negroidhaven.org (Negroid Haven)
A high level EIA is the entry point of development initiatives.