The Amanyanagbo of Abonnema, His Royal Majesty King Disrael Gbobo Bobmanuel the second has blamed the challenges of insecurity in his domain on abject poverty caused by unbridled oil exploration.
He made the disclosure while speaking in his palace.
The King who has spent 10 years on the exalted throne, recalled that insecurity was not in Abonnema in the past as there was a seaport in Abonnema, with believe of activities that engaged everybody, especially as there was no other seaport nor airport in Port-Harcourt then, but expressed dismay that the seaport was shut down when oil exploration went into ‘full gear’.
He said apart from political reasons that caused the shutting down of the seaport in Abonema, Shell and others came and crisscrossed the place with pipelines and ocean vessels were stopped from coming rendering the people who from day one were traders jobless as importing and exporting businesses came to a halt.
The King informed that there is no one industry in the whole of Abonnema and the whole of kalabari, resulting to unemployment of the youths whose numbers are increasing on a daily basis.
” These youths see people drive cars, they too want to drive cars, they see people feed well, they too want to feed well. You cannot subject people to begging for food on a daily basis”, he said.
He maintained that the youths have from time to time deviated to criminalities because of their inability to be gainfully employed stressing that an idle mind is the devil’s workshop.
Identifying his greatest challenge as insecurity caused by lack of employment and suffering, the occupant of the ancient Abonnema stool prayed that such businesses that will provide the youths jobs be established in his kingdom.
”Many of our all the people who went abroad went through here because there was no airports and sea ports in Port-Harcourt then, everybody who went to UK, Liverpool and Portugal passed through here, today the place is empty, if you go round you will see abandoned ware houses of UAC, GPO and others, no more trade. The children have nothing to do, the elders have nothing to do. That normally will bring insecurity” he stated.
Chronicling the hazards oil exploration has caused his kingdom, King Disrael said his people who are supposed to be fishermen can no longer fish because aquatic animals are being destroyed by oil spills in the rivers and the creeks.
‘’When there is poverty there must be insecurity because atch fish, today you cannot see the smallest fish by the seashore anymore no more sea foods, all you see is oil on the shores down to the creeks’, the King noted.
man must eat, now if you say we are supposed to be fishermen yes, but where do they fish, in this river as a young man, I used to go and catch fish, today you cannot see the smallest fish by the seashore anymore no more sea foods, all you see is oil on the shores down to the creeks’, the King noted.
Praying that jobs capable of generating income for the youths be established in the area, the Amanyanabo of Abonnema disclosed that his people are suffering from the activities of oil exploration when there is no oil well in the area, as oil spills usually follow the tide and settle on their shores and expressed hope that shell and NNPC would agree to relocate the pipelines which according to him are on the surface and making it easier for them to be vandalized.
