Oil Politics and its social implications in the Niger Delta: A study of Obari Gomba’s Pearls of the Mangrove

Abstract

The oil politics in the Niger Delta has assumed a global dimension. It is stronger and more complex by the day. It is now a diplomatic weapon even more deadly and efficient than the nuclear warhead to effect any political change and or to maintain the status quo in any part of the globe. This has led to the militarization of the zone and especially the oil-producing communities, the gradual and systematic ‘genocide’ through oil spills and environmental pollution. It is no longer in doubt that there is a crisis of monumental proportions in the Niger Delta and that this crisis need to be resolved urgently because of its all-round implications on the social and economic lives of the people. These activities have snowballed into the scenario that Obari Gomba captures in his collection of poems, Pearls of the Mangrove.