Do Not Lockdown Again, Fishermen Appeal to FG . . . Call On Shell To Pay Bonga Spill Fine
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by Our Correspondent
Artisanal Fishermen Association of Nigeria (ARFAN), on Friday, January 1, 2021 appealed to the Federal Government to capitalize on its successes in containing the COVID-19 Pandemic to avoid any form of lockdown in the new year.
Coordinator of ARFAN, Rev. Samuel Ayadi, who made the appeal in an interview in Yenagoa, added that another lockdown following the recent spike in Covid 19 cases would bring more hardship on fishermen.
The head of fishermen noted that they were yet to get over the effect of the 2020 lockdown on the fisheries sector. He complained that they were not included in the palliatives given to the agric sector to guarantee food security.
He also added, “Fishermen had suffered untold hardship fishing at the nation’s territorial waters since 2011 when an equipment failure from the Bonga Offshore field operated by SNEPC discharged some 40,000 barrels of crude into the waters.
“We are appealing to the government to prevail on Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO), to pay the $3.6 billion fine imposed by the oil industry regulators over the 2011 Bonga oilfield spill”.
It would be recalled that On December 20, 2011, during loading of crude at Bonga fields within OML 118 situated at 120 kilometres off the Atlantic coastline, the export line ruptured and discharged crude oil into the sea.
Ayadi appealed to the federal government to prevail on Shell to obey the courts and pay a $3.6 billion imposed by regulators for the Bonga spill incident ,adding that the compensation would ensure that fishermen thrown out of business would recover.
Ayadi further noted that having complied with a regulatory order by NOSDRA to pull out of fishing to avoid catching contaminated fishes that could compromise public health, they deserved to be indemnified for loss of income whilst the clean up lasted.
NOSDRA had in March 2015 imposed the fine on Shell for discharging 40,000 barrels of crude into the Atlantic Ocean on Dec. 20, 2011.
The fine comprised a $1.8 billion as compensation for the damages done to natural resources and consequential loss of income by the affected shoreline communities as well as a punitive damage of $1.8 bn.
