BENIN CITY – Around N20 million has been expended on the whistle blower policy in Okomu Oil Palm Company just as the small holder palm scheme remains an imperative to empower host communities.
The Managing Director, Okomu Oil Palm Company, Dr. Graham Hefer gave this indication in the company’s precinct during a training for host communities and staff of okomu oil palm company.
He pointed out at the training which hosted about 26 communities that the figure represents last year’s cost on whistle blowing and the first quarter of 2019, adding that theft was on the rise and that the only way to nip it in the bud was through the policy.
“People are resorting to theft, we hope that things will get better as we go through the year”, Dr. Hefer stated.
He remarked that already the company is involved with the state government and private NGOs on small holders palm production, adding that it will take on one community at a time on an ongoing basis.
He however hinted that the Nigeria Institute For Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) has already approached some of the communities about the scheme and emphasized the importance of communication between the company and host communities.
“Our conferences and discussions with the communities have been all about communication. Basically, we have very good relationship at all times with our host communities.”
“We want to make sure that our communities and ourselves understand each other. We should not resort to violence but talking to each other on any issues,” Dr. Hefer stated.
Speaking on the theme of his paper, “The Community, Forest and Sustainability,” Professor G. Emelue of the Department of Forest Resources and Wild Life Management, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, noted that the training was to look at the role everybody has to play towards High Conservation Value (HCF).
According to him, HCF goes down to the systematic and conscious effort to preserve forest and resources in order to use it wisely so that such resource will always exist, saying it is for the overriding interest of every host community.
He flayed deforestation as a man made activity as it disconnects the web of nature and also disorganizes the climate equation, adding that when cutting of trees continue as an activity it will cause diminishing return and cause imbalance in the food chain processes with less yield.
He called on the federal and state governments to therefore plant trees and create a proper balance in the environment among concepts of afforestation, deforestation and dereservation through compartmentalization to enhance their separate existence as part of environmental sustainability. “Everyone should play his role by planting trees, even if you don’t plant trees, don’t cut the one that is around you that has nothing to do with what you are doing,” he declared.
