RFA Lyme Bay, a United Kingdom Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) vessel, has arrived in Premiere Port (Apapa Quays) Lagos, Nigeria, as part of a Defence Engagement programme across West African partner nations.
The visit is part of the maritime co-operation agreed under the UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership in February 2024.
A statement on Wednesday said whilst in Nigeria, Lyme Bay, will conduct a variety of Defence Engagement activities including ship tours and the hosting of national dignitaries. Operationally, the ship will facilitate maritime capability training utilising embarked UK Royal Marines boarding and search teams to conduct drills and interoperability training with their Nigeria Navy counterparts.
On completion of the visit, RFA Lyme Bay will participate in Exercise Grand African Nemo, a multinational maritime security exercise, involving Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian and Nigerian Naval forces off the coast of Nigeria.
Speaking on the Ship’s arrival, the UK Deputy Defence Adviser to Nigeria, Commander Jonathan Howe said: “The UK is committed to improving regional maritime security, as well as increasing Nigeria’s ability to constrain security threats ranging from piracy, violent extremist organisations. This deployment demonstrates our pledge to work with the Nigeria Government to tackle shared international security challenges and help improve maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea.”
Lyme Bay’s Commanding Officer, Commander, Capt James Wingrove RFA, said: “It is a great privilege to bring RFA Lyme Bay alongside in Nigeria. The opportunity for my ships’ company and embarked forces to visit the region presents an exciting prospect whilst the ability to train alongside our Nigerian counterparts to hone skills, improve capability and demonstrate our interoperability is extremely valuable”.
Bayelsa Demands US$12bn from IOCs for Environmental, Health Damages Through Oil Exploration
Bayelsa State Governor,Duoye Diri has demanded from international oil companies (IOCs) US$12 billion over the course of 12 years for the repair, remediation and restoration of the environment and public health damage caused by oil and gas exploration and to lay the foundations for Bayelsa’s just transition towards renewable energy and opportunities for alternative livelihoods.
The governor made the demand on Wednesday in Abuja at the International Oil Pollution and Just Transition Conference.
He lamented that: “Not too many decades ago, we could cast nets into abundant waters, reaping enough catch to nourish entire families. However, the oil boom has brought doom. Our lifeblood – our rivers – now flow with toxic oil residue instead of vibrant life.
“We are a people of the river and the land; fishing and farming were once our essence. These vocations, passed down through generations, taught us patience, respect for nature, and the value of hard work. But the unchecked activities of International Oil Companies (IOCs) have turned the prolific rivers and fertile soil of Bayelsa into a wasteland.”
He equally decried that: “Our breadwinners, robbed of their ancestral legacy, toil on unforgiving, polluted land and fish in toxic waters, only to return with empty nets. Their families face crippling hunger and suffocating despair.”
The Governor, who revealed that he just received a report from the Bayelsa State Oil and Environmental Commission, titled “An Environmental Genocide: Counting the Human and Environmental Costs of Oil in Bayelsa, Nigeria,” said: “One study estimates that in 2012 alone, oil spills in Nigeria, and predominantly in the Niger Delta resulted in over 16,000 additional neonatal deaths.”
He stated that: “Indeed, Oil pollution and relentless gas flaring have engendered a grim tapestry of alien health conditions in Bayelsa; children are being born with severe deformities, respiratory diseases flourish, stubbornly defying even the most advanced medical interventions and therapies. Cancers, once a rarity have surged in prevalence, infiltrating the villages like a spectre that haunts the very fabric of daily life.
“The environment itself has become a crucible of suffering. The air hangs thick with toxins, while the water, once a source of life, now flows with pollutants that carry the weight of despair. This unrelenting barrage of environmental degradation has transformed Bayelsa into an epicentre of health crises, forging a reality where illness and suffering have become the norm rather than the exception.”
Diri said the report notes that as a direct consequence, “Life expectancy in Bayelsa has plummeted to just 50 years” sinking well below levels deemed acceptable by global standards, adding that: “Despite these burdens, we continue to demonstrate an indomitable spirit, navigating daily struggles with a painful resilience that belies our longing for a healthier and more hopeful future.
He noted that: “This Report therefore, has not only captured our plight, but it has also amplified our voice; a voice that has cried out for decades, unheard. For too long, we’ve pleaded for mercy, only to be met with indifference. Our children’s futures, our heritage, and our very existence hang in the balance. And today, I bring that voice before you.”
The Governor said: “Let me echo a resounding call of the Commission to the IOCs that: “concerted international action to generate and invest at least US $12 billion over the course of 12 years to repair, remediate and restore the environmental and public health damage caused by oil and gas and to lay the foundations for Bayelsa’s just transition towards renewable energy and opportunities for alternative livelihoods, adding that: “This I believe is not limited to Bayelsa State alone, therefore, I call on my brother Governors from the oil producing states to join hands with us in this battle for environmental justice.”
In his welcome address , the Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Nnimmo Bassey, said the conference comes at a pivotal moment in the socioecological history of Nigeria, noting that: “Extractivism and accompanied pollution has wreaked extensive damage in the physical, socioeconomic and cultural spheres of our national life. They have worked together to build a warped future, which must be deconstructed, and reconstructed.”
He revealed that: “The report highlighted the incredible extent of petroleum pollution in Bayelsa State and has given us a vivid picture of the extreme damage that almost seven decades of crude oil exploitation has done to the entire Niger Delta region particularly with regard to both environmental and human health. It is pure environmental genocide and there is no way to sugarcoat its horrors.”
He noted that: “The report is riddled with facts that are almost unimaginable. For example it tells us that there is a 1.5 barrels per capita crude oil pollution of Bayelsa State. It affirms an atrocious level of harm visited on the state including that there is the total hydrocarbons pollution of the water in the state at 1 million times above safe or acceptable standards. One million times above safe standards.
“We note that the pollution is from both old and active wells, flow stations and pipelines. Indeed, abandoned and decrepit oil infrastructure continue to pose extreme menace to the environment and the people of the State. Some communities have been ripped apart by canalization; while others face the threat of being washed into the ocean by combined forces of subsidence, sea level rise and coastal erosion.
“Our water channels are blatantly and recklessly used as waste dumps for produced water and sundry harmful wastes in disregard to ecological and human safety. Our lands and water bodies are privatized and damaged, through acts of egregious industrial vandalism and systemic environmental racism, emanating from the worst forms of colonial resource extraction and land grabbing.”
Sanwo-Olu Urges Nigerians To Promote Good Governance, Transparency
The Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has charged Nigerians, particularly Lagos residents, to promote the values that underpin good governance to ensure a future where the state’s economic environment will empower and uplift its citizens.
He said strong governmental institutions, effective leadership, and an unwavering commitment to transparency will build a strong and thriving economy.
Governor Sanwo-Olu spoke on Wednesday at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Annual Conference of the Chartered Institute of Directors held at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
He said the conference theme, “Good Governance as a Catalyst for Economic Recovery, Growth, and Development,” captured the current challenges and illuminated a path toward a more resilient and prosperous future.
“As leaders, we recognise that good governance is more than a moral obligation—it is an economic imperative. It is the key to unlocking our nation’s potential, attracting vital investment, and creating opportunities for our citizens. We know that transparency, accountability, and trust are the cornerstones of any thriving economy. History has shown that where these principles are absent, nations struggle.
“We have seen the devastating consequences of poor governance, where corruption and inefficiency stifle growth and erode trust in institutions. But history has also shown us that with strong governmental institutions, effective leadership, and an unwavering commitment to transparency, we can build a strong and thriving economy,” he said.
Speaking on his administration’s commitment to good governance, economic growth, and development, Governor Sanwo-Olu disclosed, “Here in Lagos State, we are deeply committed to embedding these values in every facet of our administration. We have launched reforms to strengthen institutions, promote transparency, and ensure accountability across sectors. Capacity-building initiatives equip our public servants with the skills needed to drive meaningful economic growth, and we are seeing the fruits of these efforts across the state.
“But government alone cannot achieve sustainable progress. The private sector plays a crucial role in advancing good governance. By adhering to ethical business practices, investing in sustainable initiatives, and insisting on transparency in governmental dealings, we can create an environment that fosters transparency and economic stability. Together, we can bridge the gap between intention and action.”
The former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, while delivering the conference lecture, called for a reform of the leadership recruitment process, noting that the major challenge confronting Nigeria is that most of the leaders are not prepared for leadership.
He advised Nigerians to pay serious attention to nurturing and entrenching democratic governance to place Nigeria on a sustainable trajectory of ‘people-oriented development processes’ rather than mere good governance being promoted by the World Bank.
“We should not swallow hook, line, and sinker what they bring to us. We must be very careful in terms of what measures they have suggested to us because if we don’t do that, we may inadvertently fall into greater medium and long-term problems even if we think we are seeing short-term benefits from that kind of engagement,” he advised.
Also speaking, the President and Chairman of Council of the Chartered Institute of Directors, Alhaji Tijjani Borodo, said the Institute proudly leads the charge in promoting corporate governance across the country.
The Chairman of the occasion, Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu said character is the bedrock of good governance and good corporate practices.