It has been recommended that multinational oil firms, illicit sand dredgers, and other conglomerates operating in the Niger Delta axis take proactive steps to contain the region’s polluted waters.

The counsel was given on Monday at Actions for Rivers in Nigeria in Asaba, the capital of Delta State, by Dr. Monday Whisky, the Ovie of the Idjhere kingdom area of Delta State.

He said the theme “Understanding rights of nature of River Ethiope catchment stakeholders towards recognising River Ethiope as a personhood with legal rights, the first in Africa” is apt.

The monarch, who presided over the event, bemoaned the region’s heavy water contamination, arguing that it seriously jeopardizes sources of income.

He said, “Oil companies, illegal sand dredgers, others operating in Niger Delta should put proactive measures in place to checkmate the pollution of waters in the region.

“River Ethiope is a very beautiful river with high tourism potential which is of great benefit to the state.”

Prof. Rukeh Akpofure, vice-chancellor of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources in Effurun Delta State, who gave the event’s keynote address, asserted that ecosystems, forests, oceans, animals, mountains, and rivers all have the same rights as people.

He cautioned that strong legislative protections have been put in place to protect ecosystems and make sure they are not misused.

The program’s organizer, Dafe Irikefe of the Earth Law Center and the creator of the River Ethiopia Trust Foundation, insisted that the purpose of the gathering was to inform people about the need of treating rivers as human beings due to their use to society.

Paul Okpue, a visitor at the event, complimented Dafe Irikefe for his efforts to advance ecosystem development in Delta State and the Niger Delta at large.