Presenter: Vincent Manzie Applying the Rhetoric of Renewal Model in a Contemporary African Context Lessons learned from Shell Oil Crisis in Nigeria Presenter: Vincent Manzie ICRC Conference 2017

Discourse of Renewal: A Proactive approach to Crises (Ulmer, Seeger, & Sellnow, 2007) Ethical communication Prospective vs. retrospective vison Effective organization rhetoric Organizational learning

Royal Dutch Shell

Shell in Nigeria

The Niger Delta Question UNDP Report The region is “suffering from administrative neglect, crumbling social infrastructure and services, high unemployment, social deprivation, abject poverty, filth and squalor, and endemic conflict” (2006, p. 9) Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) “internal colonialism” “political marginalization” environmental neglect by both the oil companies and the host government (Orogun, 2010, p. 234)

Data and Procedure Data sources: LexisNexis Newspaper reports, radio texts, TV news clips, company documents 351 newspaper reports (Local and International newspapers) 50 documents from Shell, NGOs, and other Civil Society Organizations Websites (Shell, NGOs, CSO)

The Crisis in Nigeria What was Shell’s crisis communication approach?

Oil Spills “…fine spray of petroleum coated the bamboo and palm trees around the Sasiga rivulet until, mixed with acid rain and humid air, it gave the plants the milky brown sheen of a chocolate forest” (McGreal, 1993, p. A8)

Gas Flaring “Because of the flares it is so hot, it is smoky, the air is thick and it is constantly nighttime here… Our rivers are black and the [acid] rain eats our houses. Our bodies are covered in oil. You feel that if you live to old age here, it is a miracle” (Mark, 2012, p. 7).

Protests and Violence Ken Saro-Wiwa Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni

A Complex Exigence Oil ownership claims Land ownership claims

A Complex Exigence “The past is so manifestly a part of the present among communities of the region…Policymaking…has proved ineffective to contain the enormous problems of the Niger Delta region…in part, the result of disagreements over historical interpretation within communities, and the lack of a historical perspective or neglect of the historical factor by government and oil corporations” (Alagoa, 2004, pp. 63-64)

Shell’s Crisis Response: 1990-2005 Reactive Response Apologia Key Strategies Denial, shifting blame, attack the accuser Scapegoating Evasion of responsibility

Proactive: 2006-2016 Statements from texts analyzed

Global Memorandum of Understanding (GMOU) Communities “take key decisions” and “drive” their own development. Transparent and accountable processes, regular communication with the grassroots, sustainability and conflict prevention. Shell describes its role in these agreements as a “funding” and “capacity building” body.

Outcomes of Shell’s Discourse of Renewal Ancestral and communal claims over lands and oil persist GMoUs reproduced neocolonial relations (paternalism) “Negotiation” problematized despite GMoU framework Uproar over community representatives

Lessons Learned: Amending the renewal model Expand the parameters of “crisis” Revisit the conception of “leadership” Reframe a “prospective vision” Consider a more radical conception of “renewal”

Expand the parameters of “crisis” African communication philosophy Palaver Tree

Revisit the conception of “leadership” Communal modes of organizing Communal decision-making Authority broadly distributed

Reframe a “prospective vision” Acknowledge ancestral presence and cultural traditions A reverence for the past to determine the present and future [Untitled by Gbenga Ogunshakin. (Total Museum of Contemporary Art)

Radical conception of Renewal Participatory and Inclusive Attentive to power relations, empowering community, legitimizing marginalized groups, honoring muted voices, grassroots as architects in participatory process