A suit filed by the Ogoni Youth Federation against Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) was on Thursday struck out on technical grounds by a Federal High Court in Port-Harcourt.
The suit was filed to seek redress following alleged inability by HYPREP to provide information on how it spent $10million take-off grant given it by the federal government for clean-up of Ogoniland.
Delivering judgement on the suit bordering on Freedom of Information bill, the presiding judge, Justice E. Obile, held HYPREP could not be sued since it was not set up by an Act of National Assembly.
The judge declared that the federal government and not HYPREP should be sued.
He also held that the Ogoni Youth Federation did not follow right judicial process in filing the suit.
Talking to court reporters over the judgement, counsel to Ogoni Youth Federation, Barrister Gabriel Pyagbara, said he would meet with his clients to review the judgement.
He said it was unfortunate that the agency set up for clean-up of Ogoniland could not be held to account because it was not set up by Act of National Assembly. He said the group believes that clean-up activity is not taking place in Ogoniland.
The counsel said that the court only looked into preliminary objection brought by HYPREP and did not determine the substantive suit.
Barrister Pyagbara said: “Ogoni Youth Federation wrote to HYPREP to provide information on how the ten million dollars take-off grant that was given to HYPREP for the execution of the Ogoni clean-up was expended and we came to court. HYPREP brought motion for preliminary objection.
“What the court did was that they looked into the preliminary objection and not the substantive matter and it determined that there were procedural processes which we ought to have followed in profiling the action. Primary amongst one of those is that we ought to have applied for extension of time before filing the action. From our perspective we were within time but the court in its wisdom said we were outside of time.”
Barrister Pyagbara said they have opportunity to refile the case in compliance with the processes.
Adaeze Amaefule for HYPREP declined speaking with newsmen.
President of the Ogoni Youth Federation, Legborsi Yemabama, however, called for the establishment of an Ogoni Environmental Restoration Authority as recommended by the United Nations saying it would speed up the clean-up of oil impacted sites in Ogoniland.
There was no representation at the court from the Federal Ministry of Environment.
HYPREP was set up by the federal government following report by United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) to carry out clean-up in Ogoniland as result of oil pollution.
