INTERVIEW WITH THE MEDIA

Question 1

You are popularly referred to as a comrade; can you please give us a brief breakdown about your activist’s profile?

Answer

I got this comrade status in my days as a student of the University of Benin in the early nineties. I played an active role in the student union government and I was known by my colleagues as a man not to shy away from challenges, risk not withstanding. I adopted a policy of taking direct and often militant action to achieve our political, economical and social goals. A few students who shared in my belief came together and agreed that in the spirit of togetherness and companionship, those of us who have distinguished themselves in the struggle for the emancipation of all students on campus from the shackles of academic slavery, should be referred to as Comrades. It was from that moment that everybody started referring to me as a comrade.

I was part of the Anti-SAP demonstration during the reign of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida. I played a very active role in the series of protests that took place on campus in the wake of the annulment of the June 12 Presidential election widely believed to have been won by Late Chief M.K.O. Abiola. I was also one of the few undergraduates who expressed concerned over environmental degradation by multinational companies in the oil producing region. I fled the country in 1995 following the crackdown on pro-democracy activists by the government of late Gen. Sani Abacha. In all this my cause stood for fairness, equity and justice.

Question 2:

Your Hope for Niger Delta Campaign is Europe based, how have you been following the trend of events in your Niger Delta locality, I mean being in touch with the events there?

Answer

Technology has made the world a small place, particularly with the birth of internet access and mobile phones for communication. I visit Nigeria very often to see things for myself and at least a member of HNDC visit Nigeria at least every month and they come back with situation reports. I am also a member of some organizations in various communities in the Niger Delta regions. Hope for Niger Delta Campaign work in affiliation with some of these organizations in areas of public awareness and sharing of information. I receive information by courier at least every week from various local organizations that I happen to work with even before the birth of HNDC and I also follow media reports on the internet. You can visit nearly all Nigerian newspapers and magazines on a daily basis through the internet. I must tell you that kudos must go to this media houses for this innovation. So I am very well informed about the trend of events in the Niger Delta locality.

Question 3:

What are your areas of interest?

Answer

We are much diversified; we have come to see that a whole lot of problems plague the people of Niger Delta. We are very concerned about the issue of derivation and resource control. The establishment and practice of true federalism, regional autonomy and self-actualization. We are also concerned about the extra judicial killings, arbitrary arrests and all forms of human rights abuse by the Joint Task Force codename "Operation Restore Hope". In the areas of charity, we are concerned about the spread of the deadly Malaria parasites and the killer HIV/AIDS epidemic. We are also interested in the areas of education and promotion of peace among every ethnic group through dialogue. We want to try as much as possible to bring HOPE in these areas to the people of Niger Delta through our vigorous campaign and support.

Question 4:

As an activist one would have expected you to prefer the human rights area than this one you profess, how do you reconcile the disparity in both areas?

Answer

As an activist who has spent more than 15 years in the defense of human rights both in Nigeria and other parts of the world, I have come to discover that human rights and charity are synonymous. As a member of a few international human rights organization, including Amnesty International, The Netherlands, I have come to understand the basic tools needed to enforce this rights particularly as it is currently being abused on a daily basis by this government in the Niger Delta region. HNDC have decided that every articles under the United Nations 1951 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights must be obeyed in Nigeria because we are signatory to this convention. Now, people suffering from the abuse of their fundamental human right, needs support to come out of this traumatic injustice. That is why we have decided not just to end our struggle on the human rights areas. After taking them out of this satanic abuse, we need to show them the door to recovery and educate them on how not to be weighed down by the set back. Finally give them supports in the areas we can afford.

Question 5:

You also talk about Malaria for the Niger Delta people and HIV, how do you carry our grassroots programmes even as you are based in Europe.

Answer

HNDC has set up a committee in Amsterdam that includes two Dutch volunteer doctors and there is a charity organization in London who is also a part of this committee. The committee has been mandated to work out a formula that will not only see us doing campaign to create awareness about the dangers and prevention of these deadly diseases but will also work on how we could bring in and distribute medical facilities to areas that are most affected. A medical company in Zurich, Switzerland has promised massive medical supplies into this region for us. We also have a local committee in the region who is also working round the clock to see that these whole things are carried out without hitches. So, when you are based in Europe it even makes it easy to put plans together.

Question 6:

You seem to have an in depth follow-up on the home scene, how do you manage it?

Answer

I am a Nigerian, born and brought up in the country. I only left about 10 years ago for The Netherlands. In all this years I have been following the social- political issues back home. I visit the country and seize the opportunity to speak to youths, elders, traditional leaders and those in government representing the interest of the people. We try to outline the problems and foster solution. When in Europe, I keep in touch with this entire people. It is something that I have been enjoying and proud of. And anything you take pleasure in, you will be able to manage it. Don’t you think so?

Question 7:

What is the difference between the activities of NGOs in Netherlands and Nigeria? How much concern do the Netherlands govts and international agencies show for Nigeria and Africa particularly in issues like disease and poverty?

Answer

There is a no much difference in planning and objectives. The only difference is that the NGO’s in Nigeria hardly get the support that they need to fulfill their aims and objectives. This is one area that the successive governments and companies have not shown financial supports as the West will do. Lack of good roads, complexity in transport and aviation, communication problems and lack of funds to carry out publicity hampers the growth of NGO’s in Nigeria. But in the Netherlands this things are well in place. You could attend a meeting in London today and return back to Amsterdam the same day! The government could support a good and viable plans put forward by NGO’s and since it’s a non profit organization, we get rebates in anything we need within the organization. This has encouraged the growth of many NGO’s in the West and they are yielding the desired results. There have been concerted international efforts to wipe out many diseases that plague not only Nigeria but the whole of Africa. I was in Gleneagles, Scotland to witness the G8 meeting where the attention of the world was focused on wiping poverty from Africa. We all saw the role of Sir Bob Gerdof, Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown and Tony Blair in bringing the world attention to the plight of the people of Africa. Personally, I see this as a clear testimony of the commitment of the West towards the problems of Africa in the 21st century. Though there may be critics who think otherwise but we must applaud their recent efforts and encourage them to do more.

Question 8:

Recently there is this debt forgiveness by the Paris club for Nigeria, how does it affect your activities as a Nigerian and what is your general Assessment of the situation taking your view from outside?

Answer

The debt forgiveness by the Paris club is a big boost to the economy of the country. It is left to be seen if the government will take advantage of this opportunity and make the common man see and feel the benefit of the debt relief. We must also not forget that the world is watching us to see how we make use of this opportunity. I was a guest speaker at a conference in Brussels and I was asked this questions; why is your country begging for debt forgiveness when in the last two years you have made a lot of money from the sales of crude oil as a result of the upsurge of crude oil prices in the OPEC market and also knowing that you have corrupt leaders who might steal this money and bring them back into obscured accounts offshore? They know we make money from crude oil sales and they also know that we have corrupt leaders. These are some of the problems that I have to content with abroad as a Nigerian. The government can start celebration but the people should try and find out the conditions that were attached to this debt relief. More so, they should be aware in advance what the government intend to do with this benefit and see if the promises will be fulfilled. If the government should fail to deliver on this, it will affect the generality of the populace. Then we will give the West the chance once again to abandon us. This might spell doom for we Nigerians in Diaspora, to input our contributions from abroad. For the government to have achieved the feat of canceling $18b out of the $35b is an achievement that we need to applaud.

Question 9:

During your activist days as a student, you were said to have encountered security agencies, what was it like?

Answer

At various times in my University days, I was arrested by security operatives. The one I will not forget was during the protests that followed the annulment of the June 12 presidential election. I was arrested along with other students. I was tortured, intimidated and kept without food for almost 3 days. When I came out eventually, I stayed in the hospital for almost a month. I have also encountered the security agencies even after my university days. In December of 1999 after I returned back home from abroad, I saw a lot of things that were wrong in the Niger Delta. I mobilized youths and tried to educate them on the need to avoid inter ethnic violence and use dialogue to achieve peace. In the aftermath of the Odi massacre, I was also arrested and detained without any crime. Just recently in December 2004, I was also arrested in Ughelli and taken to Warri. According to the security operatives, my offence was inciting violence and pipeline vandalisation which were not true. No charges were brought against me. I was detained, tortured and intimidated until I managed to get out in January. I left the country almost immediately. The question now is am I safe in my own country? The government must address the issues of human rights abuse and stop using security operatives to intimidate their critics. The world has ranked Nigeria among countries where the government does not respect the conventional rights of the citizens. This is one area that HNDC is campaigning seriously against. We must all live in liberty and not in fear.

Question 10:

You are organizing an international conference in commemoration of the 10 year anniversary of the death of Ken Saro-Wiwa in Amsterdam in November. Can you tell us more about this conference?

Answer

Yes you are right and it will be the first time something of this nature will take place in The Netherlands. We want to also use the conference to recognize the effort of a few Nigerians by inviting them to be recipients of various awards. We are expecting an over whelming audience from different parts of the world. We will also have international and local media representation to give it a wider coverage.