Deal #3100 Version #58689

The host communities of Okomu Oil Palm Company Plc in Ovia South-West Local Government Area of Edo State accused the Edo State Government of enslaving them in their ancestral land by selling the whole land where they farm to the company, lamenting that they have nowhere to farm anymore in their land. After dispossessing numerous communities from their lands and incurring huge losses for the Nigerian government, the parastatal companies were then privatised, with the more valuable of the plantation assets ending up in the hands of SOCFIN or SIAT, which Vandebeeck formed in 1991 to take over the plantations of the Oil Palm Company Ltd of Bendel State (now divided into Edo State and Delta State). These plantations are now operated by SIAT’s Nigerian subsidiary Presco (WRM, 2019 report)

"Some reports suggest that the Makilolo Community in Edo state is locked in a dispute with Okomu over previous forced evictions and access to lost farming land" A New research by Milieudefensie indicates that during the RSPO certification process in Africa, critical voices, including communities that have land disputes with the company, were not consulted. Several communities in Ovia South West say they have received formal invitations to RSPO audit meetings, but were not informed about the agenda in detail.

Several farmers from communities are currently fighting with Okomu Oil Palm Plc over alleged encroachment of their farm lands for agriculture. The land in dispute covers 13,750 hectares spread in Okomu Village, Agbede, IK Camp, Makilolo, Memo, Oweike, Aibiosi, Sobe, Uhiere, Owan, Ugbebezi, Oke-Ora, Ekpan, One, Atorunu, Ogbetu, Umokpe, Orhua, Ozalla, Sabongida Ora, Odiguete, Agudezi, Uhunmora, Uzebba, Odighi and others. The Edo State Government revoked the land in a Gazette dated November 5, 2015. The land in question was originally allotted to Iyayi Group of Companies for the purpose of planting trees, who in turn allegedly sold it to Okomu Oil. On May 20, 2020, the Ijaw-Gbene community in southern Nigeria burned down completely. Eyewitnesses accuse the security forces of Okomu Oil Palm Plantation Plc (OOPC) of having responsibility in the fire, along with members of the army. An incident left farmers and fishermen homeless, their belongings destroyed. In a joint letter dated September 4, 2020, affected communities approached President Muhammadu Buhari to ask him to intervene against OOPC.

Some reports suggest that the Makilolo community in Edo state is locked in a dispute with Okomu over previous forced evictions and access to lost farming land. In September 2021 it was reported that eviction of locals in the concession area under spotlight

According to the sources Okomu land was initially divided into two areas: BC 9 and BC10, with the company occupying BC9 while the natives occupy BC10. However, Okomu Oil Palm Company had crossed to BC10 part of the land. The company has been evacuating our communities. Some times ago, they came with soldiers to evacuate Lemon camp. After that they proceeded to Agbede community politics and evacuated them, and later extended to Oweike, they evacuated it too,” he said Between 1990 and 2000, Okomu Security personnel, working with operatives of the Nigerian Army forcefully evicted four communities (including Agbede, Oweike, and Lehmon)and demolished their houses and properties, in addition to seizing theirfarmland without compensation. Over eighty people who were living in the village were forced to find shelter in neighboring communities and in churches. This happened in the wake of the raging coronavirus pandemic, which has evidently exposed and exacerbated the many existing inequalities, to which indigenous peoples such as those in the village of Ijaw-Gbene and other parts of Nigeria, cannot be exempt.

Riverine communities such as Okomu, Oweike, Ijawgbene and Makilolo note a decline in fishing yield, potentially due to pollution due to agrochemicals pollution in the streams. The case of Okomu Kingdom playing host to Okomu Oil Palm Plantation Plc has brought in its wake a myriad of problems; environmental despoliation, obnoxious act against the indigent population, excruciating poverty, unemployment, human rights violation, forceful eviction and imminent extermination of Okomu Kingdom and her people. On the 20th of May 2020 another village Ijaw-Gbene in Okomu Kingdom was burnt down by the management of OOPC, lead by Mr Kingsley Adeyemi a security attached to OOPC. This arsonist attack came on the heels of several treats by Mr Asemota the head contractor on security for the company. The attack was made possible by a joint effort of the company security lead by Kingsley Adayemi and the Nigerian army attached to the company rendering the local farmers and fisher men homeless with all their properties destroyed. The over 80 persons who were living in the village are now homeless, and are squatting in neighboring communities and churches thus exposing them to corona virus attack. The reporter chief Ajele Sunday stated that this is not the first or the second village that is being burnt but this is the fourth: Agbede village, 31 houses; Oweike village, 28 houses; Lehmon village, 15 houses; and now Ijaw-Gbene, 7 houses. In January 2021, it was reported that the community members were harassed by the military,they also accused the company of using military personnel to block the only road that links them to Udo.Mrs Biobokogha Pena-ere from Okomu said the company had put the communities into bondage through their maltreatment and harassment, lamenting that they could no longer fish nor farm. Some of the accusations against the Company range from locking out citizens from entrance to their communities, seizure of the fishing traps from women using the stream for their livelihood activities, arsonist attacks, the use of brute force and military might on villages near their concession area, amongst other deceptions to discredit and suppress legitimate grievances from communities and activists

Boreholes, community hall, skills building, study bursaries.

In 2015, the Commander of Joint Task (JTF) Niger Delta, Major General Atewe made several attempts to reason with OOPC but to no avail. In fact when Major General Atewe visited Okomu Community he was touched by the sorry state of underdevelopment of the community. He immediately donated a borehole water and one hundred bundles of wrapper (fabric) to the women which was delivered by Col Balarabe, but Major General Atewe was retired suddenly Milieudefensie research finds that several articles in the RSPO Standard on Certification Systems for Principles and Criteria on stakeholder consultation and the certification process were not met by SCS during the OOPC certification. The OOPC certification should be cancelled and SCS and RSPO need to be held accountable. Several efforts made by Environmental Right Action, Friends of the Earth, Coalition of Civil Societies to mediate were all thrown into the dustbin without response from the government and company even after the protests march on June 21st, 2017. A report by Earthsight, a non-profit organization digs into Socfin’s alleged “abuses in Africa despite pledges” to do better