…Stress need for oil and gas court

Lawyers and the Social Development Integrated Centre (Social Action) have called for stronger policy frameworks and systemic structures to advance environmental justice in the Niger Delta and across Nigeria.

They made the call at a stakeholder engagement dialogue convened by Social Action to examine environmental justice and the role of young lawyers in driving reforms and accountability.

Leading the discussion, Professor Samuel Dike of the Department of Energy and Environmental Law, Rivers State University, said environmental justice required the meaningful participation of residents in decisions affecting the environment in which they live.

He regretted that despite so many laws made in the country, the political will to implement them had been lacking most times.

“Law is important; law is primary. You may dislike law, yet law is a veritable instrument in promoting environmental justice, in promoting remedial justice, in promoting a saner society, pollution-free
society. When you read section 20 along with chapter four of the 1999 constitution – because every environmental harm now affects human rights; so when you read them together, you can proceed against anybody or institution to ventilate your claim to ensure environmental justice,” he said.

He stressed that communities should not be excluded from decisions on environmental policies, projects and activities that directly affect their livelihoods, health and wellbeing.

He explained that all constituents of an environment ; the sun, water, land, wind, flora, fauna and human beings – were inter-related and inter-dependent hence any action that affected one would have a ripple effect on others. This, he noted, made it necessary for the environment to be protected through the instrumentality of law.

Prof. Samuel Dike, who is the president of All Environmental Lawyers of Nigeria, listed poverty, limitation of time, delay of justice and funding as some of the challenges young lawyers could face when fighting for environmental justice.

“These are some of the factors limiting young lawyers. But beyond that, a lawyer can achieve environmental justice through advocacy,” he explained.

Dike also recommended the establishment of an oil and gas court to treat cases arising from oil spillage and gas emissions in the Niger Delta, given the technicalities and metrics associated with such cases and which only lawyers and judges with knowledge of such technicalities could handle.

Also speaking , Chuks Uguru,advised young lawyers to be patient to learn from their superiors in the
profession and be well equipped with the right knowledge, language and conduct in their quest for success.

Dismissing hopes that the nation’s system may change anytime soon, he advised young lawyers not to give up but rather see opportunities in prevailing challenges and harness them to achieve set goals, especially in the quest for environmental justice.

Earlier in his opening remark, Zudonu Anumekanume Onisoman, Programme Officer, Legal and Access to Justice, Social Action, described environmental justice as part of the legal eco-system that deserved urgent attention, given the negative effects of environmental pollution on impacted communities.

He said the society needed lawyers who understood the essence of harmony within the environment and the need for inclusivity in decision making processes.

“Environmental justice is also a legal space. And it is a space that is going to require people who are willing to understand not just the law, but the science, the communities, the politics, the economics and the power relationships surrounding environmental harm.

“We need lawyers who can move comfortably between a community meeting and a courtroom.
Between legislation and lived experience. Between legal research and advocacy. And we need lawyers who understand that access to justice is not only about getting someone through the doors of a court. It is also about whether people can participate in decisions that affect them. Whether their voices are taken seriously. Whether they can obtain information. Whether they can afford representation. Whether they can prove what happened to them. Whether institutions respond when they complain. And whether the remedy, when it finally comes, actually restores dignity and improves their lives,” he said.

The facilitator of the program, Barr Arochukwu Paul Ogbonna, said one of the factors causing environment – related crises in Niger Delta communities and the difficulty in resolving some of them through judicial processes was neglect of the communities’ traditional way of doing things.

He observed that the structuring of Nigeria’s legal system of education along that of the British posed another challenge for lawyers as it did not incorporate native governance dynamics.

He said apart from the hydrocarbon pollution of Niger Delta communities, other environmental hazards going on in different parts of Nigeria should also be factored in during the stakeholder discussions, given their destructive capacity.

“As we do this discussion, let us include the developments and happenings in other parts of the country which are life-threatening and which are going to be worse because those ones can lead to earthquake. They’re already frustrating traditional economy. So let us expand our coast in that discussion while we’re talking about environmental issues,” he said.