CSOs, host communities demand environmental audit before shell divests from N’Delta

A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), oil-producing communities and concerned individuals in the Niger Delta region, last Friday, staged a peaceful rally in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to demand that an audit of the environment, health and livelihood of the people be conducted by the government and steps taken to remediate any untoward findings before granting Shell and other International Oil Companies (IOCs) permission to divest their investments from the area.
 
The protest, which was led by the Social Development Integrated Centre – Social Action, commenced from the UTC Junction and terminated at the Government House, Port Harcourt.
 
The protesters comprising women, youths and men carried placards with inscriptions such as ‘No restoration, no remediation’, ‘Save the Niger Delta, restore our livelihoods’, and ‘Shell is going nowhere until they restore our original environment’.