society
Enough Is Enough”: Elem Kalabari Rises Against Decades of Injustice, Women Stage Peaceful Protest
“Enough Is Enough”: Elem Kalabari Rises Against Decades of Injustice, Women Stage Peaceful Protest
By: Al Humphrey Onyanabo
For decades, Elem Kalabari has borne the burden of Nigeria’s oil wealth without tasting its benefits. Its rivers have carried crude oil to the Atlantic; its land has hosted pipelines, flow stations, and gas facilities; its people have inhaled fumes, watched their waters darken, and their livelihoods collapse.
Yet opportunity, justice, and inclusion have consistently flowed elsewhere. On Monday February 2, 2026, that long-suppressed pain found a powerful voice.
Defying a heavy morning downpour, hundreds of women from Elem Kalabari poured into the Cawthorne Channel 2 Jetty in what many now describe as the “Mother of All Protests.”
It was peaceful, disciplined, and resolute—but unmistakably firm.
This was not noise. It was a declaration. Placards told the story words alone could not fully carry: “We Carry the Burden, They Take the Benefits.”
“Our Sacrifice, Their Gain: When Will Elem-Kalabari See Justice?”
“Local Content Law Violated: Kalabari Demands First Right of Refusal.”At the heart of the protest lies a single, bitter truth: exclusion has become systemic.
A Broken Promise in OML 18
The immediate trigger was the recent award of the OML 18 pipeline security and surveillance contract by NNPC Eighteen Limited to Manton Engineering Limited—a company neither from Elem Kalabari, nor from Rivers State.
To the protesting women, this was not merely an administrative decision. It was another chapter in a long history of betrayal.
Under Nigeria’s Local Content Law and the Petroleum Industry Act, host communities are guaranteed the right of first refusal in contracts directly affecting their territory. Yet this right, the women insist, was ignored.
Even more troubling is the contradiction embedded in the law itself. Section 257(2) of the Petroleum Industry Act places responsibility for sabotage on host communities—yet when it comes to securing their own territory, those same communities are excluded. “How can a people be blamed for insecurity,” one protester asked, “and then denied the right to secure their own land?”
Rivers That Carry Wealth, Communities That Carry Pain
Elem Kalabari is not just another oil-bearing community. It is the export artery of OML 18.
Crude oil from Cawthorne Channels 1, 2, and 3, Awoba, and Krakrama is evacuated exclusively through Elem Kalabari waterways to the Atlantic Ocean. Without these rivers, there would be no barging route—no export. Yet the women revealed a staggering injustice: none of the vessels used in these daily operations belong to Elem Kalabari. None belong to Kalabari people. None even belong to Rivers State. No courtesy visits. No engagement with the Amanyanabo. No sense of obligation to the host community—despite operations generating millions of dollars daily.
“What flows through our waters enriches others,” said a woman leader “But when it comes to opportunity, our people are treated as strangers on their own land.”
Educated Children, Locked-Out Futures
Perhaps the most painful testimony came when the women spoke of their children. Many told stories of sacrifice—years of trading, fishing, and borrowing to send sons and daughters to universities—only for those graduates to return home unemployed, watching companies operate profitably on their ancestral land.
Those fortunate enough to secure employment fared little better.
Workers who had previously been full staff under the former operator, Eroton, were reportedly downgraded to contract staff under NNPC Eighteen Limited. Their pay dropped. Job security vanished.
Working conditions worsened.
In what the women described as the ultimate insult, workers allegedly brought in from Lagos were trained by these local employees—only for the trainees to be offered permanent roles, while the locals remained on contract.“It is not just unfair,” one woman said quietly. “It is humiliating.”
Environmental Destruction, Official Silence
While contracts and jobs disappear, pollution remains. Oil contamination has been reported repeatedly in Mbi-Ama, Moni-Kiri, Portuguese Kiri, and Jacob-Ama—areas affected by constant barging and operational discharge. Marine life has dwindled. Fishing yields have collapsed. Mangroves continue to die.
Reports have been filed. Complaints have been made. Yet regulatory agencies, mandated to investigate and sanction offenders, have taken little or no meaningful action. To the women, this silence feels like complicity. A First-Hand Account of Despair.
A First Encounter with Abandonment
My first visit to Elem Kalabari on 1st January, 2025 remains a haunting reminder of how thoroughly a people can be forgotten in the midst of plenty.
I visited in the company of The Amanyanabo of Elem Kalabari, Da Amakiri Tubo, Alhaji Mujahid Abubarkr Dokubo-Asari, Dabaye Amakiri 1. It was on January 1st 2025, the day after he received the staff of office from Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
What we met was not a community benefiting from decades of oil extraction, but a landscape of utter devastation, neglect, and grinding poverty.
Elem Kalabari was wrapped in darkness—total, suffocating darkness. There was no public electricity, no streetlights, not even basic solar lamps that have become commonplace in remote settlements across the Niger Delta. Night fell early, and with it came an overwhelming sense of isolation, as though the community had been cut off not only from development, but from national consciousness itself.
There were no schools to nurture young minds.
There were no clinics to tend to the sick, the pregnant, or the elderly.
There was no market, no organised economic space, no visible engine of local commerce.
What stood in place of social infrastructure was emptiness—broken structures, abandoned land, and a silence that spoke of long years of disappointment. This was a community sitting at the heart of Nigeria’s oil wealth, yet living as though the nation’s prosperity flowed around it, never through it.
It became painfully clear that the oil companies operating in and around Elem Kalabari had taken the people for granted for far too long. Their pipelines crisscross the land, their barges dominate the waterways, their wealth moves daily through Kalabari rivers—yet the human beings who bear the environmental cost have been left with nothing to show for it.
That visit stripped away any illusion. It revealed a truth the women of Elem Kalabari now proclaim with courage and clarity: neglect has become policy, and exclusion has been normalised. What we saw was not underdevelopment by accident, but abandonment by design.
And today, the people—especially the women—are saying with one voice: enough is enough.
At night sitting on the jetty, surrounded by mosquitoes in search of cellular network, I saw across the sea, vessels loading crude oil, I watched as others left. I saw the gas flares… It was a sight.
A Line Drawn in the Sand
The women have vowed to sustain their protest until justice is done. They have warned that if ignored, they will escalate actions, including shutting down operations at the flow station.
For Elem Kalabari, this moment marks a turning point.
After decades of neglect, the people are no longer whispering their pain. They are standing, together, and saying clearly—to government, to corporations, and to the nation:
Enough is enough.
There needs no telling. This is the first of many protests that will happen. The people have their backs to the wall and can’t take it no more. I can’t blame them, they have suffered for too long.
By: Al Humphrey Onyanabo,
The PEN
Tel: 08109975621
Email: [email protected]
society
Stop Means Stop”: Legal Experts Warn Ignoring ‘Stop’ During Intimate Acts Can Be Criminally Punishable
“Stop Means Stop”: Legal Experts Warn Ignoring ‘Stop’ During Intimate Acts Can Be Criminally Punishable
By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG
“Grounded in international law and consent principles, legal authorities stress that continuing sexual activity after a partner withdraws consent may constitute sexual assault and lead to imprisonment.”
A growing body of legal interpretation and expert opinion reaffirm that consent in intimate encounters is not a one-off event but an ongoing requirement; withdrawn at any time by either participant. Legal practitioners and rights advocates are increasingly warning that if one partner clearly says “stop” during sexual activity and the other continues, this conduct can constitute a criminal offence with significant penalties, including imprisonment.
Consent must be “a voluntary agreement to engage in the sexual activity in question,” and crucially can be revoked at any stage. Once a partner expresses withdrawal of consent (by words like “stop” or by unmistakable conduct) the other party is legally obligated to cease all activity immediately. Failure to respect this is widely recognised in multiple legal jurisdictions as sexual assault or rape.
Professor Deborah Rhode, a prominent authority on legal ethics, has stated: “Respect for autonomy and bodily integrity lies at the core of consent law. Ignoring a partner’s withdrawal of consent undermines basic personal freedoms and is treated as a serious offence in criminal law.”
According to experts, this legal principle is not limited to strangers but applies equally to long-term partners and spouses. The Criminal Code in many countries explicitly rejects implied or blanket consent based on relationship status.
Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney has similarly emphasised that clear communication and mutual agreement are essential, and that “once consent is withdrawn, any continued sexual activity crosses the line into criminal conduct.”
This means that in places where consent law is well-established, ignoring an explicit “stop” can lead to charges of sexual assault, with courts interpreting such conduct as a violation of an individual’s autonomy and dignity.
The issue has gained media and legal attention in recent years across numerous jurisdictions (including Canada, parts of Europe, and reform discussions in U.S. states) as courts and legislatures clarify that sexual consent is continuous and revocable at any time. Although no globally consolidated database exists of individual cases tied specifically to a news report on this warning, reputable legal frameworks consistently reinforce that continuing after “stop” is unlawful.
The subject engages legal scholars, criminal law practitioners, human rights experts, and statutory bodies advocating sexual violence prevention. Law enforcement agencies and prosecutors may pursue charges when clear evidence shows that consent was withdrawn and ignored.
In practice, consent frameworks require that the person initiating or continuing sexual activity take reasonable steps to ensure ongoing affirmation of willingness. Silence, passive behaviour, or failure to stop when asked cannot substitute for ongoing consent.
In summary, the legal maxim is clear: verbal or unambiguous withdrawal of consent must be respected. Ignoring it shifts the encounter from consensual to criminal, potentially resulting in serious legal consequences including imprisonment.
Lagos Family Property Dispute Turns Violent After Death of Chief Omotayo Ojo
By Ifeoma Ikem
A festering family dispute over property has escalated into a series of violent attacks in Lagos, leaving residents of a contested apartment in fear for their safety.
Mrs. Omotayo-Ojo-Alolagbe (Nee Omotayo-Ojo) the third child and first daughter of the late Omotayo Ojo, has alleged repeated assaults and destruction of property by her siblings from her father’s other marriages.
According to her account, hostility against her began while her father was still alive, allegedly fueled by the affection and support he showed her. She claimed that tensions worsened after his death in 2019.
Mrs. Alolagbe stated that her late father had given her a particular apartment during his lifetime, assuring her she would not suffer hardship, especially after her husband left the marriage. She said the property became her primary source of livelihood and shelter.
However, she alleged that her siblings had sold off several other family properties and were determined to dispossess her of the apartment allocated to her by their father.
The dispute reportedly turned violent on Nov. 15, 2025, when unknown persons allegedly attacked the building. She said the incident prompted her to petition the Chief Judge of Lagos State and the Commissioner of Police.
Despite the pending legal proceedings, she alleged that another attack occurred on Jan. 21, 2026. During that incident, parts of the building were vandalised, including the walkway and the main gate, which was reportedly removed.
A third attack was said to have taken place on Feb.18, 2026, during which the roof, gates, and sections of the walkway were allegedly dismantled. Residents were reportedly assaulted, and some were allegedly forced to part with money under duress.
Tenants in the apartment complex are said to be living in fear amid the repeated invasions, expressing concern over their safety and uncertainty about further violence.
Mrs. Alolagbe alleged that the attacks were led by a man identified as Mr. Alliu, popularly known as aka “Champion,” whom she described as a political thug. She claimed he arrived with a group of about 50 men, allegedly brandishing weapons and breaking bottles to intimidate residents.
She further alleged that the group boasted of connections with senior police officers, politicians in Lagos State, and even the presidency, claiming they were untouchable.
According to her, some arrests were initially made following the incidents, but the suspects were later released. She expressed concern that the alleged perpetrators continue to threaten her, making it difficult for her to move freely.
She also disclosed that during a meeting on Feb. 23, 2026, an Area Commander reportedly told her that little could be done because the matter was already before a court of law.
The development has raised concerns about the enforcement of law and order in civil disputes that degenerate into violence, particularly when court cases are pending.
As tensions persist, residents and observers are calling on relevant authorities to ensure the safety of lives and properties ,while allowing the courts to determine ownership and bring lasting resolution to the dispute.
Adron Homes Introduces Special Ramadan Offer with Discounts and Gift Rewards
As the holy month of Ramadan inspires reflection, sacrifice, and generosity, Adron Homes and Properties Limited has unveiled its special Ramadan Promo, encouraging families, investors, and aspiring homeowners to move beyond seasonal gestures and embrace property ownership as a lasting investment in their future.
The company stated that the Ramadan campaign, running from January 20th to April 6th, 2026, is designed to help Nigerians build long-term value and stability through accessible real estate opportunities. The initiative offers generous discounts, flexible payment structures, and meaningful Ramadan-themed gifts across its estates and housing projects nationwide.
Under the promo structure, clients enjoy a 30% discount on land purchases alongside a convenient 36-month flexible payment plan, making ownership more affordable and stress-free.
In the spirit of the season, the company has also attached thoughtful rewards to qualifying payments. Clients who pay ₦200,000 receive a Provision Hamper to support their household during the fasting period, while those who pay ₦400,000 receive an Automated Prayer Mat to enhance their spiritual experience throughout Ramadan.
According to the company, the Ramadan Promo reflects its commitment to aligning lifestyle, faith, and financial growth, enabling Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to secure appreciating assets while observing a season centered on discipline and forward planning.
Reiterating its dedication to secure land titles, prime locations, and affordable pricing, Adron Homes urged prospective buyers to take advantage of the limited-time Ramadan campaign to build a future grounded in stability, prosperity, and generational wealth.
This promo covers estates located in Lagos, Shimawa, Sagamu, Atan–Ota, Papalanto, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Osun, Ekiti, Abuja, Nasarawa, and Niger states.
As Ramadan calls for purposeful living and wise decisions, Adron Homes is redefining the season, transforming reflection into investment and faith into a lasting legacy.
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