Chairman, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL), one of the private security firms engaged by the federal government to secure oil assets, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, has accused the Nigerian Navy of frustrating the war against crude oil theft in the Niger Delta.
Tompolo said the Navy was aiding and abetting crude oil theft and other sharp practices associated with petroleum products in the oil-rich region.
He accused the navy of collaborating and encouraging illegal oil barons to sabotage the country’s economy.
Ekpemupolo made the accusation on Monday night while receiving the national leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), led by its National President, Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN), at Oporoza, Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State.
He lamented that the navy was working at cross purposes with other state actors and private security outfits saddled with surveillance over the country’s economic assets in the region.
The Tantita boss told his guests that operatives of the Nigerian Navy were colluding with criminal elements to steal the country’s oil wealth.
Ekpemupolo recounted instances in which the operatives of the navy had stalled the arrest of oil thieves at various creeks of the Niger Delta.
He said the operatives, especially from the Nigerian Navy, freely provided and offered security cover and protection for the oil thieves in the course of their nefarious activities.
Ekpemupolo lamented that personnel of the Nigerian Navy openly confronted their counterparts from the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and officials of TSSNL in a desperate effort to secure passage for oil thieves.
He said the development constituted a cog in the wheel of progress in the war against sabotage of the country’s economic assets.
Tompolo stated, “While doing this work, we have stepped on a lot of toes of people over there in Lagos and Abuja. Most times, you see that Tantita Security Services now have engagements in open confrontation with the Nigerian Navy, which has refused to cooperate with us in the war against crude oil theft.
“The navy is working at cross purposes with other government and private security agencies saddled with the responsibility to curb illegal oil bunkering.
“The navy is aiding and abetting these criminals to continue to sabotage the nation’s economy. In fact, the Nigerian Navy is frustrating us. The operatives of the navy are colluding and collaborating with these criminals to swindle the nation.
“The operatives are neck deep in the menace of oil bunkering. They are making it difficult for us to win the war.”
The Tantita chairman explained, “Just few days ago, men of Tantita Security Services intercepted a vessel carrying stolen crude oil in Port Harcourt, the personnel of the Nigerian Navy provided escort duties on-board the vessel.
“The navy personnel on-board the vessel and others speedily mobilised to the scene with gunboats and other equipment, opened fire on our men and officials of civil defence corps and DSS, who insisted that the vessel could not sail further.”
Ekpemupolo said the naval personnel eventually prevailed due to their superior firepower, and secured passage for the vessel.
He added, “Similar situation occurred at Ovwian community in Delta State, recently, when naval personnel also overpowered and subdued Tantita operatives to secure safe passage for another vessel carrying stolen crude. The cases of involvement of naval personnel in oil theft are too many to recount here.
“Every well-meaning Nigerian knows the function of Nigerian Navy and Tantita now, but nobody wants to come out to face the truth. The Nigerian Navy we support to safeguard the nation’s maritime assets has sacrificed its constitutional obligation for pecuniary benefits.”
Ekpomukpolo did not spare NBA. He said its members made their services available to arrested oil thieves, explaining, “If we happen to arrest anybody now, we would get a lawyer from Abuja, Lagos or Ibadan, to deploy all legal nuances to secure freedom for the criminal.
“We want to implore and beg members of NBA: you have a duty to play in this present situation because if we are not careful in this country, maybe we would not have money to do any reasonable thing. All of us here know that Nigeria is facing hardship.
“We are going to do our part locally. But you are there at the top. If we arrest today, lawyers would stand on the other side and this side.”
Ekpemupolo appealed to lawyers to assist in the fight against oil saboteurs.
He stated, “What I want to appeal is that you need to help us. If somebody is coming to load a vessel of 500 metric tonnes in this community, nobody has that capacity to embark on such job here, the person comes from either Lagos or neighbouring countries or Abuja.
“A hungry man here, who is serving as an errand boy to the barons, is the one that would be arrested.”
However, despite the challenges, Ekpemupolo assured that Tantita would collaborate with other patriotic bodies to ensure steady rise in the production of crude oil.
He congratulated all stakeholders who made the recent attainment of 1.8 million barrels per day (mbpd) production of crude oil possible and assured that Tantita would spare no efforts to ensure that 2mbpd of crude oil was attained by December 2025.
Responding, Osigwe commended TSSNL and other stakeholders on the attainment of 1.8m barrels of crude oil per day and promised that NBA would collaborate with Tantita and other stakeholders to stamp out the menace of crude oil theft in the region.
He explained the purpose of the visit by NBA.
Osigwe stated, “Our branches in the oil-bearing areas should be interested in the issues of oil theft which goes on in many communities because it has affected our national economy and also impacted negatively in the ability of government to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people.
“It has also impacted negatively on our foreign reserves. It has adversely affected Nigeria’s ability to meet its minimum OPEC quarter for oil production. We felt that the matter should be taken seriously.
“We thought that it would be a good place for us to come first to get first-hand knowledge of how this battle has been fought, and the challenges approached, and how the fight has helped improve the Nigerian economic standing.
“And after our NEC meeting, we heard the big announcement by the NNPCL CEO that oil production, first time in many years, has risen to 1.8mbpd with the hope of rising to about 2 million barrel per day by December.
“And we thought that this is very important because in the last few years, Nigeria has been borrowing to fund the budget, borrowing to pay salaries and execute projects.
“And our understanding of the economy is that if the country earns more from oil, which we produce, we would be able to borrow less and the government will be able to do some of the developmental activities and put infrastructures in place as expected.”
Osigwe added, “We also thought to take this visit as an opportunity to see the impact of oil exploration in the environment of the oil-bearing communities in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. And also see in what ways these communities, which form the wealth base of the nation, have benefitted from oil exploration activities and how the oil exploration has negatively impacted these communities.”
The monarch of Gbaramatu Kingdom, His Royal Majesty, Oboro Gbaruan II, Aketekpe/Agadagba, Pere of Gbaramatu Kingdom, thanked NBA for the visit, which he said was timely.
According to him, “We need people like this to come to see for yourselves, this is Gbaramatu. Before now, people were making all sorts of allegations against Gbaramatu Kingdom, but now you are here. We always tell people, if you are coming to Gbaramatu Kingdom, don’t be afraid.”
The Ijaw monarch said the kingdom was working for the peace of Niger Delta by extending hands of fellowship to other kingdoms.
He said, “Ijaw people stand for truth. We are a peaceful people.
“This is Gbaramatu Kingdom, we stand for peace, we stand to extend hands of fellowship, we work for the peace of Niger Delta, and this is how we find ourselves.”
He lamented the absence of government infrastructure in the kingdom, despite being a major contributor to the purse of the nation.
Credit: Thisday