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Urhobo
Historical Society
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Ijaw Youths'
THE KAIMA DECLARATION
THE KAIMA DECLARATION
THE KAIAMA DECLARATION
BEING COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF THE ALL IJAW YOUTHS CONFERENCE
WHICH HELD IN THE TOWN OF KAIAMA THIS 11TH DAY OF DECEMBER 1998.
INTRODUCTION
We, Ijaw youths
drawn from over five hundred communities from over 40 clans that make up the
Ijaw nation and representing 25 representative organisations met, today, in
Kaiama to deliberate on the best way to ensure the continuos survival of the
indigenous peoples of the Ijaw ethnic nationality of the Niger Delta within the
Nigerian state. After exhaustive deliberations, the Conference observed:
a. That it was
through British colonisation that the IJAW NATION was forcibly put under the Nigerian State
b. That but for the
economic interests of the imperialists, the Ijaw ethnic nationality would have
evolved as a distinct and separate sovereign nation, enjoying undiluted
political, economic, social, and cultural AUTONOMY.
c. That the
division of the Southern Protectorate into East and West in 1939 by the British
marked the beginning of the balkanisation of a hitherto territorially
contiguous and culturally homogeneous Ijaw people into political and
administrative units, much to our disadvantage. This trend is continuing in the
balkanisation of the Ijaws into six states-Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers
and Akwa Ibom States,
mostly as minorities who suffer socio-political, economic, cultural and
psychological deprivations.
d. That the
quality of life of Ijaw people is deteriorating as a result of utter neglect,
suppression and marginalisation visited on Ijaws by the alliance of the
Nigerian state and transnational oil companies.
e. That the
political crisis in Nigeria is mainly about the struggle for the control of oil
mineral resources which account for over 80% of GDP, 95 %of national budget and
90% of foreign exchange earnings. From which, 65%, 75% and 70% respectively are
derived from within the Ijaw nation. Despite these huge contributions, our
reward from the Nigerian
State remains avoidable
deaths resulting from ecological devastation and military repression.
f. That the
unabating damage done to our fragile natural environment and to the health of
our people is due in the main to uncontrolled exploration and exploitation of
crude oil and natural gas which has led to numerous oil spillages, uncontrolled
gas flaring, the opening up of our forests to loggers, indiscriminate
canalisation, flooding, land subsidence, coastal erosion, earth tremors etc.
Oil and gas are exhaustible resources and the complete lack of concern for
ecological rehabilitation, in the light of the Oloibiri experience, is a signal
of impending doom for the peoples of Ijawland.
g. That the
degradation of the environment of Ijawland by transnational oil companies and
the Nigerian State arise mainly because Ijaw people have been robbed of their
natural rights to ownership and control of their land and resources through the
instrumentality of undemocratic Nigerian State legislations such as the Land
Use Decree of 1978, the Petroleum Decrees of 1969 and 1991, the Lands (Title
Vesting etc.) Decree No. 52 of 1993 (Osborne
Land Decree), the
National Inland Waterways Authority Decree No. 13 of 1997 etc.
h. That the
principle of Derivation in Revenue Allocation has been consciously and
systematically obliterated by successive regimes of the Nigerian state. We note
the drastic reduction of the Derivation Principle from 100% (1953), 50% (1960),
45% (1970), 20% (1975) 2% (1982), 1.5% (1984) to 3% (1992 to date),and a
rumored 13% in Abacha's 1995 undemocratic and unimplemented Constitution.
i. That the
violence in Ijawland and other parts of the Niger Delta area, sometimes
manifesting in intra and inter ethnic conflicts are sponsored by the State and
transnational oil companies to keep the communities of the Niger Delta area
divided, weak and distracted from the causes of their problems.
j. That the recent
revelations of the looting of national treasury by the Abacha junta is only a
reflection of an existing and continuing trend of stealing by public office
holders in the Nigerian state. We remember the over 12 billion dollars Gulf war
windfall, which was looted by Babangida and his cohorts We note that over 70%
of the billions of dollars being looted by military rulers and their civilian
collaborators is derived from our ecologically devastated Ijawland.
Based on the
foregoing, we, the youths of Ijawland hereby make the following resolutions to
be known as the Kaiama Declaration:
1. All land and
natural resources (including mineral resources) within the Ijaw territory
belong to Ijaw communities and are the basis of our survival.
2. We cease to
recognise all undemocratic decrees that rob our peoples/communities of the
right to ownership and control of our lives and resources, which were enacted
without our participation and consent. These include the Land Use Decree and
The Petroleum Decree etc.
3. We demand the
immediate withdrawal from Ijawland of all military forces of occupation and
repression by the Nigerian
State. Any oil company
that employs the services of the armed forces of the Nigerian State
to "protect" its operations will be viewed as an enemy of the Ijaw
people. Family members of military personnel stationed in Ijawland should
appeal to their people to leave the Ijaw area alone.
4. Ijaw youths in
all the communities in all Ijaw clans in the Niger Delta will take steps to
implement these resolutions beginning from the 30th of December, 1998, as a
step towards reclaiming the control of our lives. We, therefore, demand
that all oil companies stop all exploration and exploitation activities in the
Ijaw area. We are tired of gas flaring; oil spillages, blowouts and being
labelled saboteurs and terrorists. It is a case of preparing the noose for our
hanging. We reject this labelling. Hence, we advice all oil companies staff and
contractors to withdraw from Ijaw territories by the 30th December, 1998
pending the resolution of the issue of resource ownership and control in the
Ijaw area of the Niger Delta
5. Ijaw youths and
Peoples will promote the principle of peaceful coexistence between all Ijaw
communities and with our immediate neighbours, despite the provocative and
divisive actions of the Nigerian
State, transnational oil
companies and their contractors. We offer a hand of friendship and
comradeship to our neighbors: the Itsekiri, Ilaje, Urhobo, Isoko, Edo, Ibibio, Ogoni, Ekpeye, Ikwerre etc. We affirm our
commitment to joint struggle with the other ethnic nationalities in the Niger delta
area for self-determination.
6. We express our
solidarity with all peoples organisations and ethnic nationalities in Nigeria and
elsewhere who are struggling for self-determination and justice. In particular
we note the struggle of the Oodua peoples Congress (OPC), the Movement for the
Survival of Ogoni People (Mosop), Egi Women's Movement etc.
7. We extend
our hand of solidarity to the Nigerian oil workers (NUPENG and PENGASSAN) and
expect that they will see this struggle for freedom as a struggle for humanity
8. We reject
the present transition to civil rule programme of the Abubakar regime, as it is
not preceded by restructuring of the Nigerian federation. The way forward is a
Sovereign National Conference of equally represented ethnic nationalities to
discuss the nature of a democratic federation of Nigerian ethic nationalities.
Conference noted the violence and killings that characterized the last local
government elections in most parts of the Niger Delta. Conference pointed
out that these electoral conflicts are a manifestation of the undemocratic and
unjust nature of the military transition programme. Conference affirmed
therefore, that the military are incapable of enthroning true democracy in Nigeria.
9. We call on all
Ijaws to remain true to their Ijawness and to work for the total liberation of
our people. You have no other true home but that which is in Ijawland.
10. We agreed to
remain within Nigeria
but to demand and work for Self Government and resource control for the Ijaw
people. Conference approved that the best way for Nigeria is a federation of ethnic
nationalities. The federation should be run on the basis equality and
social justice.
Finally, Ijaw
youths resolve to set up the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) to coordinate the
struggle of Ijaw peoples for self-determination and justice.
Signed for the entire
participants:
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