The Royal Dutch Shell Company has found itself on the wrong side of the law after King Godwin Bebe Okpabi of the Ogale community sued them for polluting the environment. The King who represented his community of at least 40,000 Nigerians showed up in court on December 27th with a bottle that contained the contaminated water as evidence against the oil company that has allegedly destroyed the surroundings of Niger delta. The king and his subjects are demanding Royal Dutch Shell to clean up the oil spills that have had adverse effects on the local communities.

These oil spills are said to be responsible for a good number of deaths and diseases. Shell’s legal representatives are arguing that the matter should be settled in Nigeria but the people of Ogale insist that the matter should be handled in London since they do not feel justice will be done if the case is heard in Nigerian courts. According to King Okpabi, the damage done by Shell to the area and its surroundings is quite overwhelming and will take more than just monetary compensation to resolve the matter.