HYPREP Sabotaging FG In Ogoni With Failed Water Projects – Group

The Ogoni Voluntary Projects Monitoring Group (OVPMG) has accused the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) of sabotaging the efforts of the Federal Government in Ogoni by executing substandard projects that fail immediately after being unveiled. Two overhead water tanks that were constructed recently to provide pipe-borne water for the residents of Gwara Community in Khana Local Government Area and Ebubu Community in Eleme Local Government Area collapsed in less than a month’s interval, sparking outrage over HYPREP’s project execution and standards. The group in a communique said that the unfortunate incidents expose the inconsistencies and shoddy deals in the operations of HYPREP and called for a proper investigation and total overhaul of the agency. The group alleged that some old power blocks in the system are using technical failures as a ruse and political weapons against the Minister of Environment, Hon. Balarabe Abbas Lawal, following his resolve to audit, review inflated contracts, and demand transparency. The communique, signed by the group’s coordinator, Rt Hon Lekia Court Nwanikpo and its spokesperson, Mr Precious Maaloo, expressed dismay over the failure of HYPREP to carry out its statutory responsibilities towards the development of Ogoni. The body alleged “power struggles, contract scam, lack of community engagement, use of unqualified contractors and engineers, lack of proper supervision and penchant for publicity to cover up lapses as the major snag in HYPREP operations.” It called for urgent attention to reinitiate the agency to serve its institutional obligation with a sense of responsibility, claiming that the rot in HYPREP demonstrates deliberate negligence, lack of trust, gross incompetence and compromise in service delivery. The communique, which read in parts, stated that, “For many observers, this is no longer about a broken tank. It is about a broken trust, a broken system, and possibly a calculated attempt to shatter the credibility of the Minister of Environment, Hon. Balarabe Abbas Lawal, who is currently pushing the most aggressive reform agenda within HYPREP.” ‘In politics, assassination is not always physical. Sometimes, it is the killing of a man’s credibility. If the Minister of Environment is perceived as failing Ogoni, his authority weakens, his reforms stall, and those benefiting from old systems regain power. “The collapse of two water facilities executed by HYPREP within a short duration is a failure too convenient to be a coincidence. Projects do not fail so dramatically within days unless corners were cut deliberately, oversight was sabotaged, or someone wanted the failure to happen. “The speed of the collapse raises legitimate questions; was this simply engineering or technical incompetence? Or was it a staged embarrassment, timed perfectly to discredit the Minister’s leadership?” The communique added: “How does a multimillion-naira project collapse like toys in communities already frustrated by decades of environmental failure? The failed facilities are more of a political message than an accident ” The group also regretted that: “HYPREP was created to heal Ogoni, yet today, it appears to be falling apart under the weight of its own internal contradictions, which constitutes great disservice to Ogoni people already battered under the yoke of environmental exploitation.”