10072020 - Day 4: Panel grills ‘Magu's 7 Untouchables’

Men who gave humanity a
humane face
CHRIS Otokito, 37, is not
known in Nigeria. He is not
a famous actor, singer, boxer,
businessman or millionaire.
However, he has been honoured
at least thrice within three weeks
by the British establishment on
the two prevailing universal
issues: the coronavirus pandemic
and the Black Lives Matter, BLM,
protests. He and four of his
friends have also had good
mentions in world media and
received
universal
commendation for teaching
humanity how to be
compassionate.
Otokito, a bank manager in
London and martial arts and
fitness trainer, is the son of
Anthony H. Otokito, a Nigerian
who 44 years ago, left his
Otuokpoti, Ogbia home in
Bayelsa State in search of the
proverbial golden fleece in
Britain, and naturalised.
While Britons during the
coronavirus pandemic outrage
were under lockdowns and people
feared for their lives, Otokiti and
his wife, Eleanor, were going
through the streets of Croydon
and the train station providing
and distributing food to the
hungry, especially the elderly, and
assisting the needy. The city on
June 30, honoured Chris for his
ByJEROME-MARIO UTOMI
JUST like history which has a way of
repeating itself, the sudden wave of
ultimatum issued to the Federal
Government in a space of one week by two
oil-producing communities in Delta State,
as well as another by two Niger Delta region
agitators, should be a source of worry to all.
These communities are: the Omadino
Federated Communities, an umbrella body
for Itsekiri communities in Delta State; and
the Gbaramatu Kingdom, a major
contributor to the economy of the nation
and one of the prominent kingdoms among
the Ijaw people in the Niger Delta, located
in Warri South West Local Government Area
of Delta State, Nigeria. The two groups of
agitators include the 13 Niger Delta militant
groups, former beneficiaries of the Federal
Government’s amnesty programme,
organised under the aegis of the Coalition
of Niger Delta Agitators, CNDA, and Niger
Delta ex-militants, under the auspices of the
21st Century Youths of the Niger Delta and
Agitators with Conscience, 21st CYNDAC.
The reason for the nation to feel worried
is simple. If such threat is allowed to grow,
it will again portray us as a nation that has
not learned any useful lesson from
history, mark the commencement of
another vicious circle of chaos, damage the
nation’s fragile economy that is crude oildependent
and fundamentally sweep away
President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent
claim that the Federal Government has
restored peace in the Niger Delta region
through sustained engagement of youths,
opinion leaders and other stakeholders.
A peep into their demands reveal that
Gbaramatu Kingdom wants President
Buhari to address the marginalisation meted
out to them by the oil companies. Among
other demands, they also seek
an immediate halt on the current process
“incredible” work during the
pandemic. Croydon City Mayor
Humayun Kabir told Otokito the
city was honouring him: “ …for
your hard work, compassion,
commitment and sheer
dedication to go above and
beyond throughout this crisis”.
However, it was the protests that
drew universal attention to him
and his heroic friends. As the BLM
protests gathered strength in
Britain, the far-right White
Supremacists decided to hold a
counter-rally on June 13. The
latter wanted a violent
confrontation under the guise of
defending ‘national monuments’.
It promised to be a day of bloody
fights and the police mobilised for
the inevitable clashes.
Otokito and four of his friends,
Lee Russel, Jamaine Facey, Pierre
Noah and Patrick Hutchinson,
who are into mixed martial arts,
decided that they could not be
absent from the rally. They
decided to use their skills to
protect the BLM demonstrators
against the expected far-right
attacks. Otokito said the five were
a band of brothers: “We’re all
from similar backgrounds, we’re
all from the same community and
the streets of London. Same south
London background, same
morals, same principles. We’re all
Niger Delta region in a season of threats
of bids for 57 marginal fields and coming
up with new modalities, where competent
companies owned by Gbaramatu indigenes
will be given right of first refusal. This
demand, however, comes with a threat to
shutdown petroleum operations in their
communities in the next 10 days (out which
six days has been spent), if the development
is not addressed.
On their part, the Omadino Federated
Communities, an umbrella body for Itsekiri
communities in a simialr petition
dated Tuesday, June 30, signed by Roland
Oti Yomere, Chief Priest of Omadino
and spokesman for the Federated
Communities, and addressed to President
Buhari, accused the present administration
of gross marginalisation of its people. They
want the President to address their ten-point
demand as failure to comply within nine
days will lead to a shutdown of crude oil
production activities in the locality.
At about the same time, the 13 Niger Delta
militant groups, in a joint statement signed
by their leaders and made available to
newsmen in Uyo on Wednesday, July 1, 2020,
threatened to withdraw from the ceasefire
agreement and resume hostilities in the
region because of President Buhari's
continued refusal to address the thorny
issues of marginalisation of the Niger Delta
in terms of appointments in the oil and gas
sector particularly the replacement of the
group managing director of the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC,
with a national from the region.
In a similar style, CYNDAC on Saturday,
July 5, frowned at the Federal Government’s
delay in reaching an agreement with the
Pan-Niger Delta Elders Forum, PANDEF, for
a critical and holistic look towards a
peaceful resolution of the myriads of
problems facing the region, and again
warned of renewed hostilities in the region,
if the Federal Government fails to
fathers, we all have our families
as well - we’re trying to set an
example.”
Facey in taking to his Facebook
page to mobilise for the protests,
wrote: “You couldn’t be bothered
to be there when you were asked
to help the future generations. So
do not comment now that the
outcome doesn’t fit your
narrative." Hundreds of racist
protesters led by the Britain First
far-right group gathered at
Parliament Square. They did not
waste time carrying the fight not
just to the anti-racism protesters,
but also the police. The battles
started from the Houses of
Parliament and Trafalgar Square
spilling into the streets close to
Whitehall towards Chelsea.
As the battles became fierce, the
BLM protesters caught a
bloodied man, dragged and threw
I wonder why
Nigerians are not
holding up Otokito as
an example of who we
are; why Africans are
not celebrating these
five men for giving
humanity a humane
face
him down the steps near the Royal
Festival Hall. Then they advanced
for further attacks. Otokito and
his four friends realised that the
man, later identified as 55-yearold
delivery driver, Bryn Male,
was in mortal danger.
Instinctively, they formed a
protective shield round him as the
protesters hit them in an attempt
to get at their target.
Otokito said having read the
situation correctly he and his
implement the 16-point agenda as
submitted by PANDEF few years ago.
Conversely, before believing the above
position by Mr. President that there was
peace in the region, a statement by the
spokesperson of Gbaramatu Kingdom for
the Traditional Council of Chiefs, Chief
Godspower Gbenekama JP, perhaps brings
more tragic recognition of reality that took
place in the kingdom.
It also reveals how clear it has become
that the Federal Government is doing far
more than devastation of the hopes of the
people of the region. The kingdom, the
statement noted, is constrained to write to
the president on issues that have previously
been made known to the government via
various forms and at different times to the
Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo,
especially during his visit to the Kingdom
in January 2017. It recalled that Gbaramatu
Kingdom has kept to her end of the social
contract that enabled the end of the previous
dangerous era of agitation that was
prevalent in Gbaramatu Kingdom, and has
led to a situation where “Gbaramatu is one
of the safest places to live, do business and
visit in Nigeria, despite government’s refusal
to treat them fairly.
It further lamented that the Omadinor-
Excravos road project which was started,
and would have led to greater peaceful
coexistence and dramatically improved
economic and more cordial relations
between the Ijaws and Itsekiris of Warri
South and Warri South-West neighbouring
local governments has been put on indefinite
hold under this administration. While
submitting that nowhere is this
Vanguard, FRIDAY, JULY 10, 2020 — 17
friends knew that they stood little
chance protecting Mr. Male
against the surging crowd; it was
at that point Hutchinson took the
decisive step of scooping the half
conscious Mr. Male from the
ground. He said of that decisive
moment: "They (his four friends)
created a barrier around him, and
I was the last one to come in. I
scooped him up into a fireman's
carry and marched him out with
the guys around me, protecting
me and shielding me and
protecting this guy from getting
any further punishment. I had no
other thoughts in my mind apart
from getting to safety…I could
actually feel strikes and hits as I
was carrying him; so these guys
were probably taking some of that
themselves on their person.”
Mr. Noah, a teacher said: "If we
didn’t (help) I wouldn’t like to
think what would have happened
to the poor guy. We wanted to save
his life and save the Black Lives
Matter campaign as well.”
Mr. Male realising that he
owed his life to the five men said
through his 21-year-old son,
Harry Male that he would want
to meet and thank his rescuers.
The British establishment is
already doing that. Most major
news channels featured and
celebrated men who did not
hesitate to come to the rescue of
an adversary, thereby teaching
that all lives matter, including that
of a man who does not share such
cherished truth.
The five were invited to the
House of Lords where they were
received by Michael Hastings,
Baron Hastings of Scarisbrick.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq
Khan, sent the men a
commendation letter dated June
19, 2020 in which he wrote: “I
want to thank you for the
incredible humanity you showed
during a day marred by violence,
This threat is neither by
accident nor the first half of a
reoccurring cycle but rather
the beginning of something
new
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desecration and racism displayed
by right-wing extremists. I know
your intentions were not to be seen
as heroes but your actions
demonstrated the very best of us
and were the antithesis of the hate
and division the right-wing
extremists were determined to
sow.”
Famous American Civil Rights
leader, Reverend Al Sharpton,
called Hutchinson on television
to say: "I saw what you did, and it
warmed my heart. I had just come
from a demonstration the day
before, and had done several
speeches and what I had tried to
articulate you did in one
gesture…You demonstrated that,
without opening your mouth,
without any drama or without any
press notices, and I want you to
know, you put the movement in a
keener perspective than anything
those of us that’s been out there
could say or do… You’ve done a
tremendous thing, because we’re
not marching out of hate, we’re
launching out of love for
everybody, and if we become
infected by the rancour and the
hatred that we’re fighting, then we
become the replacements, not the
reformation or the answer.”
As they soaked in well-deserved
praise and commendation across
the globe, Otokito said what he
and his friends did sent “a
different narrative to how the
image of a Black man is usually
painted…we went down to make
a change and make a difference.
And it’s only going to happen if
everyone stands up together and
does that.”
I wonder why Nigerians are not
holding up Otokito as an example
of who we are; why Africans are
not celebrating these five men for
giving humanity a humane face
and pointing to all races, the path
to universal emancipation.
marginalisation more glaring than in the
abrupt abandonment of the multi-billion
dollar Export Processing Zone, EPZ, Gas
Revolution Industrial Park, Ogidigben and
Deep Sea Port Project, Gbaramatu Project
that would have created thousands of direct
and indirect jobs.
Certainly, a striking tragedy deepened by
the awareness that it was
avoidable particularly when one
remembers that this threat is neither by
accident nor the first half of a reoccurring
cycle but rather the beginning of something
new. And, looking at the recent declaration
by the Social and Economic Justice
Advocacy, SEJA, a Lagos based nongovernmental,
that the Nigerian state has
not treated the Niger Delta well, it is obvious
that the protests by the communities is
justified.
It noted the African Commission’s wellconsidered
decision in the celebrated
SERAC vs. Nigeria’s case, finding the
Federal Republic of Nigeria in gross
violations of 2, 4, 14, 16, 18(1),21 and 24 of
the African Charter on Human and Peoples’
Rights, ACHPR, and therefore
recommended a total clean up of the
polluted Ogoni and other adjoining
communities in addition to taking
preventive remedial and compensatory
measures to improve economic and social
outcomes for the Ogoni community. SEJA
in a statement was particularly not happy
that all available indicator points to the fact
t h a t t h e
Federal Government environmental
legacy project which is the clean up of Ogoni
is failing and lagging behind because
Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation
Project, HYPREP, handling the Ogoni
cleanup lacks the capacity to conduct a
proper cleanup.
Continues online: www.vanguardngr.com
•Utomi, a media consultant, wrote from
Lagos