President Bola Tinubu on Monday approved the reconstitution of the Governing Council and Board of Trustees of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP).
This was disclosed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, in a statement announcing the development.
The Minister of Environment, Mr Balarabe Lawal, will serve as chairman of the reconstituted Governing Council. Other members include Mr Loanyie Barituka Victor, representing environmental non-governmental organisations; Mr Bright Onyebuchi Jacob and Mr Henry Obiabure, representing Niger Delta communities; Prof. Barinedum Nwibere and Mrs Baride Gwezia, representing the Ogoni community; and Mr Gideon Onyebuwa and Dr Ibikunle Omotehinse, representing the nine oil-producing states.
The President appointed four alternate members, including Dr Abraham Olungwe and Mr Maeba Ekpobari for Ogoniland, and Mr Joseph Akedesuo and Mrs Beauty Warejuowei for the Niger Delta.
The President also reconstituted the HYPREP Board of Trustees, with Mr Emmanuel Deeyah reappointed as chairman. Other members include Mr Fred Igwe and Dr Fred Kpakol for Ogoni communities and stakeholders; Mrs Dorcas Amos for other Niger Delta communities; and Mr Jide Damazio, who was reappointed to represent environmental NGOs.
The development comes after President Tinubu, in January, held a closed-door meeting with key stakeholders from Rivers State, including now suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, former Governor Nyesom Wike, and representatives of Ogoni leaders, to address pressing issues surrounding the Niger Delta cleanup project and escalating political tensions in the state.
The meeting was attended by key government figures, including Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila; National Security Adviser, Mr Nuhu Ribadu; former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mr Mele Kyari; Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr Mohammed Idris; and other senior officials.
Many quarters have advanced the need to ensure the Ogoni cleanup as well as tackling environmental and socio-economic challenges in the region.