A group, Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) has faulted to a recent report, aired by a media station, Africa Independent Television (AIT) on 25 May, 2025, during the visit of the Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Peter Ryan, to the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) office in Port Harcourt.
According to YEAC-Nigeria, the report claimed that the Federal Government had confirmed 80% restoration of the polluted environment in Ogoniland.
YEAC-Nigeria through its Executive Director, Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface who is also an Ogoni-born activist that has been involved in the Ogoni clean-up project advocacy, monitoring, and reporting disputes the claim and calls for a retraction by AIT.
The organization asserts that the report is fake news and misleading, quoting the Project Coordinator, Prof. Nenibarini Zabbey, out of context, based on its investigation.
According to YEAC-Nigeria, HYPREP cannot claim 80% restoration within nine years, given the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Report’s recommendation for a 25-30 year project implementation duration starting from 2016 when the Ogoni Clean-up was formally flagged-off and commenced.
The organization emphasizes that the Ogoni cleanup project is far from over, requiring over 20 more years and additional funding beyond the $1 billion meant for the first five years of the project that has not even been fully released by the polluters under the polluter-pay principle for the project as expected.
YEAC-Nigeria further clarifies that Prof. Zabbey’s statement during the ambassador’s visit referred to the Centre of Excellence being over 80% completed, not the Ogoni environmental restoration hence, AIT’s claim is false.
However, the organization calls on the Federal Government and HYPREP to clarify Prof. Zabbey’s statement and, also demands that AIT retracts its misleading report and apologize to the Ogoni people for spreading false information that could jeopardize the project funding and leave Ogoni communities continously polluted.
