Women from the Ogoni ethnic group in Rivers State have vowed to stage a nude protest if the Federal Government of Nigeria proceeds with plans to resume oil extraction in the region without addressing their longstanding grievances.
Operating under the banner of the Ogoni Women Coalition for Sustainable Environment, the women insist that oil activities should not resume until the core issues that led to the suspension of exploration in the 1990s are fully resolved.
In a statement released on Wednesday in Port Harcourt and signed by representatives of 15 women’s groups, the coalition declared that Ogoniland remains unprepared for renewed oil exploration.
Among the signatories were organizations such as Mba Okase Initiative, Eedee Ladies of Tai, De Voice of Eleme Women Association, League of Queens International, and Gbogbia Feefee Women, alongside several others advocating for environmental and social justice in the region.
Addressing journalists, Dr. Patience Osaroejiji, leader of the Mba Okase Initiative, reaffirmed the women’s stance, stating that they were prepared to strip naked in protest if their demands were ignored.
“If the government insists on resuming oil exploration without addressing our concerns, we, the women of Ogoni, will take to the streets unclothed until the world hears us,” Osaroejiji warned.
Another group leader, Pat Ntetep of the Eedee Ladies of Tai, emphasized that successive governments have failed to implement the demands outlined in the Ogoni Bill of Rights, which originally led to the halt of oil activities in the area.
“It is deeply concerning that the government is pushing for oil resumption in Ogoniland while ignoring the grievances that halted extraction decades ago. There has been no justice for the families who lost loved ones and property due to state repression. Those responsible for atrocities against our people remain unpunished,” Ntetep stated.
She further criticized the government’s lack of commitment to environmental restoration, pointing out that pollution from past drilling activities has not been adequately cleaned up, nor have the recommendations of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) been fully implemented.
The women’s coalition is now demanding that the government abandon plans to resume oil extraction and instead focus on remediating the ecological damage caused by years of exploitation.
Their warning comes amid growing tensions in Ogoniland, where discussions about restarting oil activities have been met with resistance from both community leaders and environmental activists.
