Groups Call for Release of Environmental Activist Odey Oyama from Police Custody

By: Michael Mike

A coalition group of environmental activism organisations have condemned the arrest and detention of environmental activist Odey Oyama by the Nigerian Police, insisting that it signifies a rising trend of abuse and regression in the country.

The statement was endorsed by the following organizations; Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF); We the People; Policy Alert; Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre; Peace Point Development Foundation (PPDF); ANI Foundation; Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria); YEAC Community Energy and Development (YEAC-CEAD); Life Empowerment Foundation; Lekeh Development Foundation (LEDEF); The Colonist Report Africa.

Others are: Social Action Nigeria; Yeraba Women Foundation; Health Education and Human Rights Advocacy Initiative (HEHRAI); Girls Power Initiative (GPI); Nkori Rural Women and Development Initiative (Uyo Iban Amplifier Initiative); Secure Health and Environment Development (SHADAfrica); Association Managing Development in Nigeria (ARADIN); Partnership for Social and Environmental Development Initiative P4SEDI; Green Planet Initiative International; PADIC.

Also included are: The Save Our Green Spaces Group; Emerald Forest Reserve, Ikoyi Osun, Osun State; Emilie Guitard, French National Center for Scientific Research CNRS; Save Ogunpa Forest Team; Rainbow Watch and Development Centre (RWDC); Environmental Rights Action(ERA/FoEN); and Cooperate Accountability Public Participation Africa (CAPPA).

According to the statement, on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, environmental activist and director of the Rainforest Resource and Development Centre (RRDC), Mr. Odey Oyama and six others were arrested by Police officers from the Ikom division of the Cross River State Police Command. He was taken from his Okuni home and driven to Calabar where he was kept incommunicado, without legal representation and without formal charges for at least 24 hours.

Odey Oyama, described as a resolute campaigner for the protection of the rainforest and biodiversity in Cross River state, a cause that has brought him in constant confrontation with illegal loggers who plunder the rich forest ecosystem of Cross River state, has in recent times engaged in a fierce campaign against Chinese business concerns working with indigenous collaborators who are logging the Effi Rainforest, a trend that has resulted in massive deforestation, dissipation of wildlife and loss of biodiversity.

The statement said: “Up till now, Odey has not been formerly charged with any wrongdoing,” noting that: “The action of the Nigeria Police has once again demonstrated flagrant disregard for due process and their role in stifling dissenting voices, especially when vested business interests are at stake. In this instance, Odey Oyama a conscientious objector to the destruction of the environment, rather than enjoy the protection of the government, is being systematically persecuted.”

The statement added that: “As civil society organisations and activists in Nigeria, we are familiar with the selfless campaigns of Odey Oyama that have earned him national and international recognition and have helped to preserve the ecological heritage of Cross River State. We are therefore alarmed that rather than support the efforts of Oyama and other campaigners like him to check the illegal destruction of the Cross River forests, the Police is complicit in weakening his resolve and repressing him. It is even more alarming that he was arrested and detained without formal charges against all extant Nigeria and international laws.

“We are also concerned that this latest arrest is symbolic of the growing intolerance of the government towards the legitimate activities of civil society organizations. In Cross River State in particular, we have witnessed a pattern of arrest and detention of journalists and activists with the flimsiest excuses, but covertly to stifle democratic dissent. We are worried that the civic space is shrinking at an accelerated rate in the state, and the Police is highly complicit in this deteriorating trend.

“We call on the Nigeria Police to immediately release Odey Oyama and his 6 associates and cease all further hostile acts against their persons and legitimate campaigns.”

“We shall go to all legitimate lengths to enforce the right of Odey Oyama and his associates to advocate peacefully without any let or hindrance,” the group promised.

Groups Call for Release of Environmental Activist Odey Oyama from Police Custody