Reps oppose a minute silence for Saro-Wiwa

The House of Representatives yesterday kicked against a proposal by Kingsley Chinda (PDP-Rivers) to observe a minute-silence in honour of late environmentalist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, 22 years after he died.
He said the Federal Government was slow in the clean-up of the region, as recommended in the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report forwarded to it in 2011.
Saro-Wiwa was killed with eight others by former military government on November 10, 1995, for fighting for rights of the Ogoni people.
The lawmakers said it would be inappropriate to grant Saro-Wiwa the honour, arguing that his execution was “duly considered and endorsed by the government.”
The House, however, regretted that 22 years after, the environmental situation in the Niger Delta, which the late environmentalist fought for, had not improved.
It urged the Federal Government to declare Ogoni land an “Ecological Disaster Zone’’ and invest resources tackle the devastation.
Benjamin Wayo (Benue – APC) said: “While I agree that the environmental situation in Niger Delta is pitiable, we have to be careful in adopting the prayer in the motion, calling for one minute silence for the late environmentalist.
“Section 33 (1) of the Constitution says every person has a right to life. It is only permissible to be taken through constitutional means, just as it was done in this case.
“Therefore, it will be out of order to observe a minute silence for Saro-Wiwa under this circumstance.”
Onyemaechi Mrakpor (Delta – PDP) said observing a minute-silence for Saro-Wiwa or not, would not change the narrative that the pollution and infrastructure decay in the Niger Delta had not abated.
He said: “The things Ken Saro-Wiwa stood for are still there as they have not been addressed. There is no clean water to drink, and environmental pollution is still there.”
“It is not all about one minute-silence; we should be concerned about enhancing the environment in the Niger Delta.”
|The Nation