The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has strongly denounced the devastating gas explosion that occurred on May 14 at the Shell gas plant in Gbarain, Yenagoa Local Government, Bayelsa State.
The council vowed to pursue legal action against the owners of the oil facility, holding them accountable for the incident.
The group noted that the stance reflects their commitment to advocating for the rights and well-being of the communities affected by the explosion.
The group, in a statement by its National Spokesman, Berefa Bedford Benjamin, read at a press conference in Port Harcourt, capital of Rivers State, at the weekend, demanded urgent intervention by the oil company to contain the rate of loss of life.
Benjamin stated that they have instructed their lawyers to initiate the processes to seek justice on what he described as “the continuous rape” of our environment that leads to continuous loss of lives and properties.
He said: “We condemn in totality, the recent gas explosion allegedly owned by Shell SPDC in Bayelsa state, we demand urgent intervention by the company before more persons lose their lives. We question the sincerity of oil multinationals in their exploration activities in the Niger Delta.
“We are going to explore every legal means to put a stop to these recurrent failures of obsolete equipment in the region. Our legal team shall initiate the processes to seek justice on the continuous rape of our environment that leads to continuous loss of lives and properties.”
Benjamin, however, called on Senate President Godswill Apkabio and the lawmakers from the region to put stringent laws to protect their environment from collapsing into oblivion due to obsolete operations by oil multinationals.
Recall that on the 14th of May 2024, there was a gas explosion at the Shell gas plant in Gbarain, Yenagoa Local Government, Bayelsa State.
Owners of the facility, the SPDC, through its spokesman, Michael Adande, confirmed the incident saying that the cause was yet to be ascertained.
Consequently, the fire was put out on Wednesday, May 15, and the site had a Joint Investigation Visit(JIV) conducted to determine the cause of the incident.