"Oil is a disgrace for the Cabindans", he stated, warning of the "environmental catastrophe" he anticipates for that province if the current situation continues.
Former vicar general of the diocese of Cabinda and currently a professor at the Instituto Superior de Ciências da Educação and the Instituto Politécnico Superior Lusíada, in Cabinda, Raul Tati left the National Assembly to lead the UNITA shadow government.
"Several times as a deputy to the National Assembly, I denounced the events taking place in Cabinda regarding the constant aggression of the environment due to oil production. Cabinda has practically become a dumping ground for oil companies", he accuses.
Raul Tati says the problem goes beyond spills.
"It's not just the issue of spills. Spills are constant and it's so visible that the beaches of Cabinda are all practically blackened by the accumulation of oil", he described.
"Of course, this affects in some way the economic activities linked to fishing. We practically do not have industrial fishing. We have artisanal fishing and our fishermen survive from this activity and there are times when they are even prohibited from going into the sea when there are spills", he adds.
There is also "a much more serious problem. We have no idea of the danger of the fish we consume in Cabinda, because there are no, we are not given, let's say, laboratory studies on the quality of this fish, because it could be that this fish, due to the marine pollution, bring carcinogenic substances", he stressed.
"There are many occurrences of cancer already in Cabinda and we don't know if this has to do with what we are consuming. We don't know", he laments, and highlights: "If what is happening in Cabinda continues, we are foreseeing a environmental catastrophe in Cabinda in the medium or long term, especially the issue of the atmosphere itself as well, which is affected by effluents from the oil industry".
Critical of the policy pursued by President João Lourenço's government in Cabinda, Raul Tati questions what was not done.
The case is the construction of a refinery which, he claims, is progressing without the essential environmental impact studies having been carried out.
The prime minister of the UNITA shadow government does not question the construction of the refinery or oil exploration, but rather the lack of guarantees regarding "evident risks or presumed risks".
As for the companies that explore oil in Cabinda, he says he does not know to what extent they truly invest in environmental protection.
"We don't know. The truth is that the harmful effects are already present and speak for themselves, with the connivance of the Angolan government, which does little or nothing in this regard", he repeated.
Raul Tati also considers that the wealth leaving Cabinda is not reflected in the quality of life in the province.
A scene of insecurity, the province is a terrain for the guerrillas of the Front for the Liberation of the State of Cabinda (FLEC), which has been fighting for the independence of the territory for several years, claiming that the enclave was a Portuguese protectorate – as established in the Treaty. of Simulambuco, signed in 1885 – and not an integral part of Angolan territory.
The Government normally refuses to recognize the existence of dead soldiers resulting from guerrilla actions by independence activists, or any situation of instability in that northern province of Angola, always emphasizing the unity of the territory.
For Raul Tati, "Cabinda's problem is still not resolved and as it is not resolved, the more time passes, the more the situation becomes more radical, especially independence feelings."
"Right now, Cabinda is the province of Angola where there is the greatest care from the point of view of defense and security", he adds.
The Angolan Armed Forces do not usually, nor is it their doctrine, to confirm events carried out by FLEC, he acknowledges.
For Raul Tati, the issue of human rights loses out.
"We know that for the Angolan government, the only language it has regarding the Cabinda issue is the language of repression. In such a way, it uses the police and the courts to repress the Cabinda problem, with several young people and activists being detained," he says.
Raul Tati also criticizes the limitations on the exercise of civil liberties.
"There are many limitations, not to mention the absence of some rights, civil and political freedoms that we see in other parts of Angola. For example, we do not have the right to association and also the right to demonstrate is absolutely non-existent", he accuses.
Pessimistic about the future of the province, Raul Tati regrets that João Lourenço does not consider "a negotiated solution or, at least, a dialogue regarding this situation".
"What we only know is that they are making contact with FLEC leaders for an unconditional surrender within the integration policies in Angola. Nothing more", he concludes.
