Governor orders ExxonMobil to clean up oil spill

The Youths’ President, Ibeno Communities, said that Gov. Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom, has ordered ExxonMobil to clean up the oil spill that occurred at Ndito Eka-Iba in Ibeno, Akwa Ibom on May 8.

The Youth President, Mr Godwin Ikot, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Ibeno Local Government Area of the state on Thursday.

He said the governor, who spoke through Mr Etekamba Umoren, the State Secretary to the Government instructed the oil giant company to commence the clean up exercise immediately in the area.

“ExxonMobil have agreed to clean up the spillage and fixed the Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) to the site of the incident for Friday, June 3,'' he said.

Ikot noted that after the JIV, the oil giant company would negotiate how to clean the oil spill in the affected areas.

“We the youths in Ibeno Communities stand with the decision of state government, that ExxonMobil should clean up the entire areas affected by the oil spill,’’ Ikot said.

The Youth’s President, however, decried that the recent oil spill was massive and has affected people in the oil producing areas of the state.

Mr Ogechukwu Udeagha, Manager, Media and Communications of ExxonMobil, Lagos confirmed the incident.

Udeagha, however, explained that the Monarch drilling rig, owned by Depthwize Nigeria Limited, drilling on behalf of Conoil Producing Limited damaged an MPN pipeline culminating in an oil spill.

“I am still trying to get the report from the team that went there.

“They were supposed to file a formal report but they haven’t done that, until we see that report, we can’t issue a statement,’’ Udeagha said.

NAN reports that government officials, ExxonMobil and Depthwize team, youths of Ibeno among others were all represented at the meeting.