Protesters Tackle Oil Firms As Collapsed Bridge Cuts Off Community

Angry residents of Unyenge, a riverine oil-producing community in Mbo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, have taken to the streets to protest the alleged neglect of the fishing hub by oil and gas extraction firms.

The community said the peaceful demonstration became necessary following the collapse of a link bridge connecting the Unyenge axis to other adjoining communities.

They blamed the collapse on alleged neglect and marginalisation by oil firms operating in the area amid poor infrastructure, limited employment opportunities and environmental concerns.

LEADERSHIP Weekend gathered that the protest was prompted by many years of unresolved community issues, which were recently exacerbated by the collapse of the link bridge.

The bridge has cut off residents since October 15, 2025, when one of the companies’ trucks, laden with heavy equipment, was passing through it, grounding socio-economic activities, including maritime businesses.

The protesters, including youths, women and community leaders, armed with placards bearing various inscriptions, converged at the riverbank in the early hours and threatened to remain there until their concerns were addressed.

They chanted solidarity songs while displaying placards with inscriptions such as: “No bridge, no work”; “We demand employment for our youths”; and “No road, no work”, among others.

They urged Savannah Energy Nigeria Limited and other firms, including Tulcan Energy Resources Limited, Shimao and Jeosco, to address their concerns without further delay.

Addressing the protesters, Chief Godwin Matthew, representing the Unyenge group of villages, alleged that Savannah Energy had failed to fulfil its promise to reconstruct the bridge.

He added that, for 17 years, community stakeholders had engaged with the company on issues bordering on the lack of an access road, water supply, a hospital and, more recently, the collapsed bridge, but to no avail.

“For over 17 years since Savannah Energy Resources started operations in our community, there has been no access road to the community. Another issue is the bridge.

‘”We pleaded with them and sent several correspondences, but all our efforts have proved abortive.

“Our youths have been working with them and other companies, but none of them has been converted to permanent staff. There is no hospital and no pipe-borne water. Today, we are here for a peaceful demonstration, and we will remain here until the end of the year. Nobody will leave until our plight is given due attention,” he said.

Chief Matthew lamented that since the bridge collapsed, the companies’ drivers had diverted to another route through Esit Eket and Ibeno to their operational base without considering the damage done to the bridge.

“Since the collapse of the bridge last year, the company promised to rebuild it by December, but it has yet to fulfil that promise. They now use a pontoon to cross to the other side but do not allow community members to use it,” Chief Matthew further stated.

He added that residents are now forced to travel by boat and pay about N1,500 to cross the river.

The community’s youth president, Mr Joseph Timothy, accused the companies of neglect and marginalisation in about eight areas of concern.

He listed the concerns to include the lack of an access road, limited employment opportunities, poor conditions of service and the companies’ failure to commit to reconstructing the collapsed bridge, among others, stressing that the issues must be resolved.

The women leader, Mrs Nkoyo Etim, also raised concerns over the companies’ alleged failure to provide basic social amenities and adequate employment opportunities for women and young people.

She alleged that gas flaring and oil pollution had adversely affected residents’ health, water sources and agricultural activities.

“We are here to condemn what we consider the unfair treatment of Unyenge by the companies. We do not have a hospital, potable water, good roads or a functional market.

“Residents have raised concerns about respiratory illnesses. Oil pollution has affected our sources of drinking water and reduced crop yields.

“Since the bridge collapsed, movement has become difficult and expensive. We used to cross freely to the other side of Unyenge, but residents now have to pay to travel there by boat,” she lamented.

Etim also alleged that women had been excluded from employment and contract opportunities, adding that some women were previously engaged in vegetation-clearing work around the companies’ fly camp but were no longer given such opportunities.

However, the community manager of Savannah Energy, Lady Arit Bassey, could not be reached for comments, as calls and messages sent to her phone were not answered.