Oil Spill in K-Dere: YEAC-Nigeria condemns NOSDRA’s claim that it is a rumour, Calls for Port Harcourt Zonal Director’s Sack
Oil Spill in K-Dere: YEAC-Nigeria condemns NOSDRA’s claim that it is a rumour, Calls for Port Harcourt Zonal Director’s Sack
The attention of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) has been drawn to a statement credited to the Director General of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), Mr. Idris Musa, that the oil spill report in K-Dere community in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State was a mere rumour that no oil spill occurred in the community as reported in the media.
It would be recalled that crude oil spill incident was reported in K-Dere Community on January 3, 2024, and members of YEAC-Nigeria’s volunteers’ network under the auspices of the Crude Oil Spill Alert System (COSAS) reported the incident to the Executive Director of the Advocacy Centre, Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, which formed the basis of a press statement from the organisation captioned “OIL SPILL OCCURS IN K-DERE COMMUNITY” dated January 8, 2024.
Besides, members of the community also reported and spoke about the crude oil spill incident on the PPMC/NNPCL pipeline to many local radio stations and newspapers across Nigeria, which NOSDRA has now described as a mere rumour.
The DG of NOSDRA, Idris Musa, while responding to a media enquiry on the crude oil spill from an international media organisation, Bloomberg USA’s correspondent, on January 12, 2024, said, “There’s no spill in the area; it’s just rumour”.

Spill point stopped with cement, as earlier reported by YEAC-Nigeria here

The fact that the NODSRA DG in Abuja-FCT described the confirmed crude oil spill report in K-Dere as a just rumour about what did not happen means that the Port Harcourt Zonal Director of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency NOSDRA, Mr. Imeh Ekanem, had dismissed the spill report and fed Mr. Idris with such false information, which means there are no plans by NOSDRA to carry out a Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) to the spill site.
As such, ADVOCACY CENTRE reiterates its call for the sack or redeployment of Mr. Imeh Ekanem from Rivers State for gross incompetence since he assumed office, poor handling of reported oil spill reports, and failure to respond to confirmed crude oil spill incidents in the state.
It would be recalled that Mr. Imeh also failed to carry out JIV in Eteo Community, where crude oil spills occurred on NNPC pipeline since June 8, 2023, to date, leading to our earlier call, especially on Nigeria Info, 92.3FM, Port Harcourt, for his sack for failing to perform his duties while collecting monthly salaries and allowances as a public servant posted to the state.
YEAC-Nigeria wishes to re-confirm to the public, local, and international media organizations with photographs of the incident that a crude oil spill actually did occur in K-Dere community on January 3, 2024, on the PPMC/NNPCL pipeline.
The organisation reiterates its demand for JIV at the site, the invocation of relevant sections of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA, 2021) as it relates to oil spills, cleaning up the spill site, and the payment of adequate compensation to the affected community and its people within the shortest possible time.

Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface,

Executive Director, YEAC-Nigeria

12-01-2024